Issue 67 by Blue Sax Publishing Ltd

Changes start with...

the best of the alternative west

winter issue 67 • dec - feb 2012

FREE ● positive change, personal growth, holistic health, local food, green & ethical living ● unique & inspiring local events ● everything from acupuncture to zen in our A-Z directory

● WIN a native hedgerow, green cleaning goodies, luxury men’s grooming kit Spark cover_#67.indd 1

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William Bloom

The Power of

Modern Spirituality WORKSHOPS OFFERING CONCEPTS AND SKILLS THAT YOU CAN USE AND SHARE IMMEDIATELY THE ENDORPHIN EFFECT — Mind-Body Health and Well-Being Glastonbury 10/11 March THREE GOLDEN KEYS — The Power of Modern Spirituality Glastonbury 14/15 April THE SWORD AND THE CHALICE — How to Cooperate and Work with the Energies of Nature and Cosmos Glastonbury 12 /13 May YOUR HEROIC JOURNEY — The Psychology of Spiritual Transformation Glastonbury 9 /10 June STRONG AND CLEAR — Holistic Leadership, Group Dynamics and Speak Your Truth Glastonbury 21/ 22 July Spiritual Companions Certificate VENUE St Mary’s Hall, Glastonbury. 10am-5pm each day. For more detailed information, longer blurbs and booking:

www.williambloom.com Phone: 0845 3452102 (local rate), 01372 272400 Email: welcome@williambloom.com

PRAISE FOR WILLIAM’S NEW BOOK The Power of Modern Spirituality “This is a marvellous book full of practical wisdom and helpful suggestions how to nurture spiritual growth in everyday life.” — Ursula King, Professor of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Bristol “A wonderful and accessible text that will serve as a manual for spiritual seekers for decades to come.” — Dr David Hamilton, author Why Kindness is Good for You and The Contagious Power of Thinking “Brilliant, erudite, intellectually delightful, practical, logical, honest... I am loving your book. It is keeping me sane….” — Isabel Losada, author Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment “This deeply reflective book is scholarly, rigorously researched, practical and beautifully written.” — Brian Thorne, Professor of Counselling, University of East Anglia “Deep and beautiful book, full of wisdom and kindness.” — Tim Freke, author of The Jesus Mysteries and How Long Is Now? “This is a milestone book.” — Barefoot Doctor, Stephen Russell “Authority, breadth of vision and inclusiveness … Bloom’s inspiring approach shows how being spiritual does not have to mean a retreat from reality.” — Rev Stephen Wright MBE, Professor of Nursing, Chairman Sacred Space Foundation “A really remarkable synthesis, The Power of Modern Spirituality goes straight to the top of the recommended reading list.” — Rev Nicola Coombe, Director, One Spirit Interfaith Foundation UK “If ever a book were needed by our modern world, this is that book.” — David Spangler, President of the Lorian Association

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The Spark

the spark issue 67 winter edition free, thinking and independent: welcome to the UK’s biggest ethical quarterly.

welcome

diary dates for your next 3 months

ignite event ads

doing it yourself

more homegrown expertise 2.

classes, events, meets, retreats

12 14 doing it yourself spotlight

the team

ignite

Thanks to Bill for providing a steady pair of hands around the Spark editorial these past nine months. We’ve got some nourishing soul food in these pages when you get a quiet minute to hunker down. We’ve been inspired by so many people this issue: from Vietnam vet-turned-Buddhist-monk Claude Anshin Thomas, to the artists doing two jobs so they can run free happiness workshops in a shopping centre, to all the folk down at Occupy Bristol (and in the Occupy movement around the world) who are taking a stand for all of us. Enjoy your winter! The Spark team

dance away the winter blues

beer shampoo, cheap double glazing

spotlight

dance to nurture you through winter

q&a

Roaring Girl Productions’ Liz Crow 4.

(1.) Ann Sheldon, advertising manager (2.) Darryl Bullock, publisher (3.) Vicki West, editor (4.) Beccy Golding, production manager (5.) Andy Ballard, ad & cover designer (6.) Naomi Ross, finance worker, Tilly Black (proof reading), Jo Halladey, Alex Cater (photography) Contributors: Darryl Bullock, Alex Cater, Andy Ballard, Beccy Golding, Hannah Latham, Fiona McClymont, Kate Evans, Dave Hamilton, Rachel Savage, Kesty Morrison, Anton Saxton, Will Simpson, Noreen Wainwright, Chris Mitchell, Rachel Fleming, Adamx Golding The Spark was created by John Dawson

what we do

The UK’s biggest free independent ethical quarterly, The Spark reaches 120,000 readers in Cheltenham, Gloucester, Stroud, Taunton, Glastonbury, Swindon, Bath and Bristol. Our editorial is independent so no advertorials for us. We report on local solutions and people making a difference to their lives and their communities, while our adverts cover a range of ideas to help make the world a better place. We’re looking for new freelance writers (green issues and social change) so get in touch and share your enthusiasm/expertise.

cycling, eco-building, herding cows

social change

squatting, cohousing, black history

16 q&a

18 planet

what Cycling City’s done for you

artists & activist Liz Crow

food fight SAD with mushrooms

family autism support, music for tots

26 28

mind, body, spirit

herbs, happiness, course updates

marketplace

the small print

Advertisers are advised that all copy is their sole responsibility under the Trade Protection Act. All adverts must comply with the British Code of Advertising Practice. We reserve the right to refuse, amend, withdraw or otherwise deal with advertisements submitted to us at our absolute discretion and without explanation • Blue Sax Publishing Ltd can accept no liability for any loss or damage resulting from omission or inaccuracies relating to telephone numbers, wording, spacing or positioning or other material regardless of how caused • We reserve the right to vary print run by 1000 up or down• Blue Sax Publishing Ltd, who publish The Spark, cannot take any responsibility for the quality of an advertiser’s service or advertiser’s conduct. In choosing an advertiser you may wish to consult the appropriate professional bodies • The Spark title can only be used under current licence from Blue Sax Publishing Ltd • Intellectual copyright remains with the publishers of The Spark - Blue Sax Publishing Ltd© All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without permission of the publishers.

planet

green goodies, ethical products

spark listings

22 food

A-Z directory of complementary therapists, eco-services and more

mood-enhancing edible mushies

letters & comps

obituary: Dr Shen Hongxun

changemaker

86 Colston Street Bristol BS1 5BB

49 50

Buddhist monk Claude Anshin Thomas

Tel: 0117 914 34 34

advertising

editor@thespark.co.uk

buy an ad to reach 120,000 people

www.thespark.co.uk

Tuesday to Thursday 10am - 5pm The Spark is printed on PEFC-certified paper. Please recycle when you’re done. PEFC Certified This product is from sustainably managed forests and controlled sources PEFC/16-33-228

www.pefc.org

50 28 mind, body, spirit changemaker

monk Claude Anshin Thomas

what now for herbalists?

eyewitness

Kesty Morrison at Occupy Bristol

rear view

our resident cartoonist Kate Evans

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4 ignite december compiled by Darryl Bullock

get involved!

the main event: the Pierian Centre say hello, wave goodbye As we revealed in our last issue, after almost 10 years’ service the Pierian Centre in Bristol is closing its doors. But instead of mourning its loss the team there are holding an open day in celebration of all they have achieved over the last decade. The last ten years have been “an extraordinary adventure” for June, Nick and their colleagues, and though there is much they will miss, they are confident that the Pierian Centre “will live on in people’s hearts”. You are invited to join them at their Open House on December 6, 10.30am-10.30pm, for food, drinks, fireworks and more. June and her team are looking forward to seeing some old faces and celebrating with each and every one of you! www.pieriancentre.com

red ribbon army

December 1 is World AIDS Day. HIV/AIDS is on the rise: new diagnoses are double the annual rate seen in the mid-1990s, and by 2012 there will be 100,000 people living with HIV in the UK. Get involved in the fight against HIV at www.worldaidsday.org

Widcombe fair

Visitors to Bath’s artiest quarter can enjoy music, mulled wine, late shopping and festive frolics as Widcombe turns on its Christmas lights Dec 1. The day is followed by an Xmas show from the hilarious Henning Wehn at the Widcombe Social Club on Dec 2 and a Christmas Art Supermarket at Widcombe Studios on Dec 3-4. www.henningwehn.de, www.bathartistsstudios.co.uk

candle mass

This year sees the 25th anniversary of that singularly West Country event: Dunster by Candlelight. On December 2-3 this Somerset village will be lit only by candles as locals raise funds for St Margaret’s Hospice. For two nights shops and the streets will be filled with a lantern procession, medieval street performers, stilt-walkers, bell-ringers, carol singers and, of course, morris dancers. www.dunsterbycandlelight.co.uk

twistmas

Circomedia in Bristol present a family Christmas show with a twist December 11, showcasing members of Circomedia’s City Circus youth programme and PanGottic, a duo who met through Circomedia, with their award-winning Full Twist: an upbeat silent comedy mixing physical theatre, clowning & contemporary circus. Call Colston Hall Box Office 0117 922 3686, www.colstonhall.org

almanac

Full moons: December 10 (sunrise 8.07am; sunset 4.04pm), January 9 (sunrise 8.16am; sunset 4.24pm) and February 7 (sunrise 7.42am; sunset 5.12pm). Issue 68 of The Spark will be out from February 27. 2012 is a leap year, with

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cruelty-free Christmas

The Bristol Animal Rights collective are holding a CrueltyFree Festive Fair, Broadmead Baptist Church, Bristol December 10, with vegan food stalls, samples and cookery demos. Cruelty-free cosmetics and other goods will be on sale and there will be loads of info from campaigning groups. www.bristolanimalrights.org.uk

29 days in February. Birthdays, anniversaries etc: December 3 is the International Day for Disabled People, and the anniversary of the death of the painter Renoir; Charlie Chaplin, ‘the Little Tramp’, died on Christmas Day 1977; the late J D Salinger, author of The Catcher In The Rye, was born on

A deadline for public consultation on the proposed Hinkley Point C nuclear plant on the Somerset coast has been extended until 15 December. Operator EdF wants permission to make radioactive discharges from the nuclear power station, which would be Britain’s biggest if it is built. Find out how to help prevent this at the Stop Hinkley campaign site: http://bit.ly/uX4xwI

The British Red Cross ’50s Pop Up Swap Shop comes to Bristol December 11. Buy/swap vintage clothes and jewelry, get a 1950s makeover (and photograph)or take part in an Upcycling Frilly Knicker-Making workshop to raise money for the British Red Cross. 10am-6pm, free entry, bring clothes to swap. Afternoon tea (cucumber sandwiches and homemade cakes), will be served by a glamorous array of 1950s housewives.

Take action on environmental and sustainability issues in the South West and beyond: join Bristol Friends of the Earth’s monthly meeting and social, 7.30pm, 2nd Tuesday, (Dec 6, Jan 12, Feb 9), Big Chill bar (upstairs), 15 Small St, Bristol BS1, plus new talks series starting Jan 2012. www.bristolfoe.org.uk

The Bristol Library Bus Service is due to be cut in early 2012. The library bus stops all over Bristol once a week and provides a valuable and much loved outreach service. Many users are elderly or have kids/other dependents or health/ mobility issues which prevent them accessing the Central Library and not every district in the city has its own permanent library. Get involved and email your local councillors if you use the bus, to lobby for its survival! Also email any comments/ suggestions to Kate Murray, (head of libraries), who is looking at options for the future of the bus. Kate is on k.murray@bristol.gov.uk Find your local councillor at www.writetothem.com

vocal training Recreate times

gone by and climb on board the West Somerset Railway for a festive start to Christmas, December 12-14. Join the train at either Minehead or Bishops Lydeard, and stop at stations along the way to sing carols. Wrap up warm, bring a torch and join in the wintry warbling! £9 (adults), £6.50 (kids), under 5s free. www.west-somerset-railway.co.uk

www.communitybuild.org.uk

To book a place on ‘Flo Jo’s Upcycling Knicker Making Workshop’, book a stall at the event, donate items or just find out more, please contact Jess: jnorth@redcross.org.uk

no free lunch, but... Get

some festive spirit at Glastonbury Abbey, where legend says Joseph of Arimathea brought Christ and later built Britain’s first Christian church. The Abbey is hosting a series of lunchtime sessions featuring traditional Christmas music December 8, 15, 20 and 27. Entry to the sessions is free to visitors who have already purchased a ticket to the Abbey. www.glastonburyabbey.com

The Community Build website is a new initiative from Ecomotive, a local organisation committed to helping people get new sustainable build and cohousing projects off the ground in and around the South West. Community Build links up people with people, and people with land. Whatever housing project you’d like to progress, you can create a ‘group’ on the website, and look for new members or become a member of someone else’s group if you like their vision/ philosophy. You can also search for land on the website, and put up details of sites you know of.

dinner and drag Australia’s

please send your activist news to editor@thespark.co.uk

fabulously camp, deliciously funny Drags Aloud return to Komedia, Bath December 18 with Showgurl, their new gloriously twisted comedy cabaret show. Make the most of it and enjoy a three-course festive meal of local, seasonal ingredients. www.komedia.co.uk

January 1, 1919, one year and one day before Isaac Asimov, biochemist and author of the collection I, Robot; Joan of Arc, had she not been burnt at the stake for heresy in 1431, would have celebrated her 600th birthday on January 6; January 21 is Martin Luther King Day; on February 6 it will be exactly

60 years since Queen Elizabeth ll ascended to the throne; traditional belief would have it that the birds begin to sing again, after their winter break, on February 12; animator Tex Avery, involved in the creation of Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny and other cartoon stars, was born on February 26, 1908.

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HAWKWOOD

Creativity & Skills for living well

NEW 2012 PROGRAMME now ready! “Combines heart, mind and soul with curiosity and fun.” Well Being * Spiritual Exploration * Crafts * Creative Expression * Painting & Photography Music improvisation * Nature & Environment Buddhism & Mindfulness * Jesus & Myth Helen Chadwick Songwriting weekend Hawkwood College, Stroud GL6 7QW

01453-759034 www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk

Dramatherapy ‘Acting 4 Real’

(2) ‘Our Time’

A closed group of 8 evenings for those interested in the personal and therapeutic benefits of dramatherapy for self healing and change.

Drama as therapy for the benefit of the wider society. Exploring the practice of Sociodrama and Forum Theatre and its application to communities, groups, and cultures With Martin Gill & Rachel Perry £320

Starts central Bristol Jan 10th 2012 13th-15th April 2012 Bristol

Master Classes

Inspiration & technique for Continued Professional Development:

(1) ‘A Golden Thread’

11th-12th February 2012 Bristol Following our intuition and reclaiming our creativity. A journey into The Sesame Approach of dramatherapy With Martin Gill £220

Attend both and receive a 10% discount Residential option available

Scenario 01225 427601 rachel@scenario59.freeserve.co.uk www.dramatherapy.org.uk Member of the Health Professions Council

Training for Beginner and Practising Hypnotherapists

Conscious Living for 2012!

Enrol now for 2012 Courses

Become a Hypnotherapist Hypnotherapy and NLP Training

Friday 6th - Sunday 8th January 2012 Glastonbury Retreat, Somerset

taught locally in a dynamic, interactive way in small classes by a qualified and accredited teacher and full time hypnotherapy practitioner.

with Suzanna Viney, Free Love & Veli Martin Keitel

Plus, short courses for practising hypnotherapists in NLP Self Esteem and Confidence and helping problem gamblers. Evening, weekday and weekend classes available.

2012 and Beyond.. Cleansing & Living Food, Chanting, Fire ceremony, Sunrise walk to the Tor, Sacred Spring Initiation, Breathwork, Dreaming & Space for yourself

For course details and interviews contact Hilary Norris-Evans on 0788 771 4892 or via www.getmindfit.co.uk To download a brochure go to www.hypno-nlp.org

Limited to 12 spaces. Cost £220, early bird £180 before 1 Dec For Booking or more info please contact Suzanna on: 07968 017740 or email: seviney@mac.com

Course accredited by the National Council For Hypnotherapy (UK) and the National Guild Of Hypnotists (USA) and NCFE (UK)

www.thebreathknows.com 5

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6 ignite january get involved!

ramble on Clear out the cobwebs, and

the New Year’s Eve excesses, by joining the Ramblers on a free walk around Crook Peak in the Mendips Jan 1. Meeting at 9am in Bristol, it’s the perfect way to walk off those extra mince pies. Call Carew 0117 944 3042 to arrange car share www.bristolramblers.org.uk

don’t get plastered

Have a go at dry stone walling at Montacute House, near Yeovil Jan 7. (£30). Learn to master this medieval skill and rebuild an ancient wall. Booking essential, wear steel toe-capped boots (if you have them!), and wrap up warm. Montacute House 01935 823289

druid dudes Discover astonishing facts

about the Stone Age on a National Trust walk around the ancient Stonehenge landscape Jan 8. The route (6 miles) takes in Neolithic enigmas including Durrington Walls and the Stonehenge Cursus. Booking essential. £6, kids and dogs (on leads) free. 0844 249 1895

The Gloucester Food Bank is looking for people help with fundraising. The Food Bank provides packages of basic food supplies, at no cost to individuals and families in poverty (referred by one of the more than 60 front-line care agencies). The past year has seen a 20 per cent rise in clients, and the Food Bank needs more help from volunteers. “We have lots of families struggling, and I’ve seen an increase in people on low incomes and people coming in because of debt,” says manager Anneliese Sterry. To make a donation go to www.foodbank.org.uk/how-to-give or, to help with fundraising, email info@food-bank.org.uk

Anonymous Promotions is a non-hierarchical network which organises benefit gigs and events for anti-capitalist struggles across the South West, and is already looking into next year with a fundraiser on 20 January 2012 in Bath’s Hobgoblin for the town’s newest activist group BARF. For more info on both the gig and how to get involved with Anonymous, see http:// AnonPromo.Wordpress.com

hand it to them

The Session, Cheltenham Jan 14-15 is the UK’s only closeup magic convention. Covering everything from performance and sleight-of-hand to marketing, it attracts the world’s best close-up magicians to perform and teach. www.sessionconvention.com

lighting up time

Back for its second outing, Illuminate Bath will see the historic city’s streets filled with light-based installations Jan 14-15. Over 100 students, staff and graduates from Bath Spa University were involved in 2010, and this year will see dozens of new artworks showcased. Highlights include Clockwork City, created in collaboration with greyworld, an artists’ collective which has created mesmerising public art works across the world, and Attracted To Light, from the Bathbased artist and filmmaker Robert Fearns. www.illuminatebath.org

Eastside Roots Community Gardening Project at Stapleton Rd train station, (Easton, Bristol) needs volunteers. www.eastsideroots.org.uk

Changes Bristol is a mental health charity (no. 1120388) that runs mutual support groups specifically for the Bristol area. The support groups help those with depression, anxiety and mental distress recover and to be able to live their lives to the full. Meetings provide a safe and non-judgemental environment for people to talk and work towards mental well-being. Changes Bristol need new volunteer group coordinators to facilitate group meetings. Email jason@changesbristol.org.uk or call 0117 941 1123 for more info.

an apple a day The village of Carhampton, near Watchet, is famous for its Wassailing

celebrations January 17 in the orchard of the Butchers Arms, preceded by a smaller event in the village Community Orchard: villagers form a circle around the largest apple tree and hang pieces of toast soaked in cider in the branches for the spirit of the tree before a shotgun is fired to scare away evil spirits. Sparkland Wassails include a charity Wassail on January 14 at Rich’s Farmhouse Cider, Mill Farm, Highbridge, the annual Winter Wassail at the Boiling Wells site in St Werburghs, Bristol (date TBA) and the 4th Bristol Winter Cider Festival, Brunel Passenger Shed, Temple Meads on January 27-28. www.clstickets.co.uk www.richscider.co.uk www.carhampton.org

tall tales Now in its sixth year, Bristol’s

Storytelling Festival Jan 25-Feb 5 is part of National Storytelling Week. The Festival is held at venues throughout the city and features storytellers recounting folk tales, horror stories and humorous yarns for adults, families and children who want to experience the magic of storytelling. www.bristolstoryfest.co.uk

Arc is a new community bar/club/café in central Bristol. An eco-friendly, not for profit, and socially minded project, it comprises a vegan cafe (open daily from 11am-2.30pm), and regular Wednesday evening ‘Truth Juice’ sessions, (talks on subjects such as anti-nuclear campaigns). Night-time is for DJs and bands. “We’re really keen for local activist or community groups to raise funds by using this space for benefit gigs”, says owner Rita. Volunteers for the project are also needed for cooking, IT and anything else you can offer. Arc plan to look at ways for volunteers to get accredited training in the future. Arc, 27 Broad Street, Bristol BS1 2HG, email arcbristol@gmail.com

Louisiana hayride

Dubbed the number one event of its kind in the UK, the Gloucester Cajun and Zydeco Festival Jan 26-28 promises three-days of non-stop partying. The longest running Cajun festival in Europe celebrates its 19th birthday this year, and the acts anounced so far include Joe Le Taxi, Chanky Chank, the Cajun Roosters, Elvis Fontnot and the Sugar Bees, River Zydeco and the Hackney Ramblers. www.gloucestercajunfestival.co.uk

did you know? January and February were introduced by Numa Pompilous, who extended the Roman calendar from ten to 12 months in about 713 BC. The word February comes from Februa or Februatio, which was the name

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for the Roman festival of ritual purification, undertaken before Spring on the 15th day of the month. (February is not named after the Roman god Februus; he came along later and was himself named after the festival). The Anglo Saxons knew February as Sol-monath, or cake-month because (according to the Venerable

silents are golden Back for its

eighth year, Bristol’s Slapstick Festival’s annual Silent Comedy Gala returns January 27 with a tribute to the screen’s greatest clowns: Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy. www.slapstick.org.uk Bede) cakes were offered to the gods during this period although, in Old English, sol is the word for mud which, as anyone who has tried gardening in February will tell you, is much more appropriate. February was also known to the Saxons as sprout-kale from the sprouting of green vegetables such as cabbage or kale.

The Create Centre has a new green library, stocked by members of the public. People can donate their own books on the subjects of environmental, health or social issues. The library will then operate on a ‘bring a book, borrow a book’ scheme, but will also have a reference-only section. Open now! www.createbristol.org

Because February has only 28 days in non-leap years, it was known in Welsh as y mis bach, ‘the little month’. February 2 is now celebrated as Candlemas Day, originally an ancient pagan Festival of the Light, which falls halfway between the shortest day and the spring Equinox.

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A complete Qi Gong System Founded by Dr Shen Hongxun and taught by Andy Henry

Bristol Workshops 2012

18-19 February 16-17 June 27-28 October Learn a simple yet powerful system of Chinese healing exercises to clear your body, energy system and emotions. Old tensions are quickly released leaving a sense of lightness, clarity and vitality. Students will also receive healing from the teacher. Open to all. £95 per w/end 10am - 5pm Sat & Sun

Contact: Bristol Weekend Workshops and Healing Clinic T 0117 3770103 / 07766 100383 E Taijiwuxigong@waitrose.com

A LTERNATIVES

Events inspiring heart, mind and soul

St James’s Piccadilly / London

LAMA SURYA DAS Awakening the Buddha Within

Nonviolent and Mindful Communication

Weekend 25/26 February Awaken to who you really are

CAROLINE MYSS

for personal and professional development

Sacred Contracts

Spring 2012 workshops and courses in Bristol with Shantigarbha Warren

Sunday 4 March Fulfil your soul’s destiny

♦ 18-19th February: 2-Day Nonviolent Communication (NVC) Foundation Training.

♦ 17th April onwards: Mindful

MARIANNE WILLIAMSON

Communication course (six Tuesday evenings).

A Return to Love

♦ 12-13th May: 2-Day NVC

Saturday 28 April Become a miracle worker

Deepening + Anger training.

♦ Also 11-15th July, Somerset: Buddhafield Festival.

“I couldn’t have imagined just how much I would get out of it before I did the course and just how utterly compelling and life-changing the approach can be.” Melissa Wright, October 2011

I n f o r m a t i o n a n d B o o k i n g : w w w. S e e d o f p e a c e. o r g

Book now at www.alternatives.org.uk

Life changing seminars to help you resolve your challenges and facilitate your own shift to a higher level of Awareness John Gloster-Smith

o al s s e in urs ble r o a C ail te av rces Wo

Connecting to Inner Peace 18 – 19 February 2012

The Point of Awareness

“ I experienced a very powerful group experience facilitated in a very skilled and exceptional way. It was expertly led by group needs but had a wonderful underlying structure which was informative and positively challenging.”

22 – 25 March 2012

Venue: Equilibrium, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN15 3RS For more information: www.johnglostersmith.com | 01249 813 188 | john@johnglostersmith.com JGS_Advert_final.indd 1

8/26/11 12:39:51 PM

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8 ignite february get involved!

rainbow warriors

February is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered History Month. OutStories Bristol, the ongoing project to collect and document the stories of LGBT people in the region, is compiling an audio history of local gay life and is keen to hear from anyone who has their own tale to tell. www.lgbthistorymonth.org.uk

season’s cycle Discover how to use

the Celtic Cycle to learn more about yourself, your rhythms and how you reﬂect or resist the natural ﬂow at Westley Farm, near Stroud Feb 1 when artist Lucy Voelcker presents a workshop on the pagan festival of Imbolc; part of her series of talks on The Cycle of the Year www.westleyfarm.co.uk

food fiesta

February is the month of the annual Seville Tapas Fiesta and, inspired by the way that festival brings together the local community through food, new restaurant Poco Loco in Stoke’s Croft, Bristol will be offering free tapas tasters made from local, seasonal ingredients and sustainable fish from British seas Feb 3-4. www.pocobristol.co.uk

comedy capers Make

a date for one of the UK’s most popular stand-up comedians. Two-time Perrier awardwinner Chris Addison, star of The Thick of It and Mock the Week is at the Colston Hall, Bristol Feb 10 with his new, one-man show The Time Is Now, Again. www.colstonhall.org

It’s nearly time for the Earth First Winter Moot, which takes place over the weekend of February 10-12 in Glasgow. Earth First! is an international movement of environmental direct action networks, and the Winter Moot is a great place to discuss problems and develop solutions with other activists. www.EarthFirstGathering.org.uk

This spring the Bristol Energy Co-op is looking for people to invest in the installation of solar panels onto community buildings across Bristol, at zero cost to the building owners. The Co-op receives a guaranteed 25-year income from the government for the electricty. It then distributes the income back to its investors, and uses any surplus to invest in further energy projects. You can invest anything from £50 to £20,000. www.bristolenergy.coop

chips with everything Potato Days offer spud growers, from the beginner to the

champion, the chance to meet other growers, swap or purchase dozens of varieties of seed potatoes (including heirloom varieties) and find everything you might need for the Kitchen Garden. If you want to learn more about this incredibly versatile vegetable Kilver Court, in Shepton Mallet, hosts the Seventh annual Somerset Potato Day on Feb 12; the village of Codford, near Warminster, is holding its fourth annual Potato Day Feb 18 and The Cheese and Grain in Frome plays host to the town’s second Potato Day on Feb 26. www.potato-days.net

Loving Hands are a charity who knit, crochet and sew for people and animals in need around the world. Some of their chosen causes this winter include blankets for orphaned baby elephants in Kenya, and knickers for African girls who have recently undergone surgery. They also plan to provide warm clothes to Salvation Army and Crisis for rough sleepers in the UK this winter. Get involved if you’re an avid stitcher! Check out their website www.lovinghands.org.uk

Radio Kebele are an anarchist radio collective run out of the Kebele Community Centre in Easton, Bristol. With one show a month, you can catch local and global news, interviews with local folk about activism, events and arts. Do you want to get involved with the radio? Promote your event? Discuss a local musing? Get in touch! www.kebelecoop.org

load of junk The Oxenwood Outdoor

Education Centre, nr Marlborough, Wilts, will create a Junk Yard Orchestra Feb 12 using junk and ordinary household objects. A day for kids between 8 and 11 who are budding musicians, poets, songwriters, singers, rappers or dancers. www.oxenwoodcentre.co.uk

spring’s the thing Why not

take a stroll through Kingscote woods Tetbury near Tetbury and search for the first signs of spring on Feb 14? A woodland walk, specifically for under-5s, takes in the wild snowdrops and yellow aconites which carpet the woodland. Caroline Aistrop 07894 663436

for batter, for worse Get

into the Pancake Day spirit by taking part in a traditional pancake race in front of historic Dyrham Park house, near Bath, Feb 19. Races will take place throughout the day and are suitable for the young and the young-at-heart alike! 0117 937 2501

full-on folk the ancient market town of

Frome in Somerset is hosting its first ever Folk Festival, February 18-19. Some of the top names in English folk music have already been booked to appear, including Spiers and Boden (left), Bella Hardy, Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman, Jenna Witts, Belshazzar’s Feast, Tim Edey & Brendan Power, Pilgrims’ Way, Elfynn and Show of Hands’ frontman Steve Knightley. Add to that workshops for instrumentalists, Ceilidh-goers, Morris dancers and singers and you’ve a full weekend of folky fun! www.fromefolkfestival.co.uk

leaping into 2012… 2012 is a leap year. A ‘leap’ day added because the regular calendar year of 365 days is shorter than a solar year by almost six hours. Leap Day has existed since 49 BC and the Julian reform of the calendar,

Spark67.ab27.indd 8

but it wasn’t until the introduction of the Gregorian calendar (adopted in the UK in 1752) that we recognised February 29 as Leap Day. A number of traditions have grown up around Leap Day. In Great Britain tradition has it that women may propose to men only on Leap Days. Supposedly, a 1288 law

fare’s fair

It’s the 20th anniversary of Fairtrade Fortnight February 27-March 11, a chance for consumers, retailers, producers & campaigners to promote awareness of Fairtrade and campaign for trade justice. That means better prices, decent working conditions and fair terms for farmers and workers in the developing world www.fairtrade.org.uk instigated by Margaret, the child queen of Scotland (Queen of the Scots by the age of three, dead before her eighth birthday), required that fines be levied on a man if he refused marriage on this day. In Denmark, the tradition is that women may propose on the preGregorian Leap Day, February 24, and that refusal

Winter is a difficult time for abandoned animals. Support Bristol Dogs and Cats Home’s Winter Warmer Appeal by donating a tin of food, old blanket or whatever change you can spare. With over 200 animals to feed at any one time, the Home’s annual food bill is around £52,000 and they need your help! You can drop food donations to collection points around Bristol (in shops, supermarkets and veterinary practices etc), or to the RSPCA Bristol Branch Charity Shop on Gloucester Road or directly to Bristol Dogs and Cats Home in St Philips. You can also donate via your mobile phone: just text WARM22 and the amount (i.e. WARM22 £5) to 70070. To host a Winter Warmer Appeal collection box at your workplace or school, email rebecca@rspca-bristol.org.uk or call 0117 300 3968

Inspiration 4 Ability is a show to inspire people living with disabilities to lead a full and active life. Friday/Saturday March 30/31 at UWE Bristol Exhibition and Conference Centre To find out how you could be involved or register for free tickets www.inspiration4ability.co.uk

must be compensated with 12 pairs of gloves. In Finland, if he refuses he should buy her the fabric for a skirt. In Ireland, the story goes, in the 5th century St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick about having to wait for a man to propose. St. Patrick said the yearning females could propose on this one day.

18/11/11 15:16:19

The Naranjo Institute presents

Seekers After Truth (SAT)

Nutritional Therapy Training in Bristol

with the Institute for Optimum Nutrition

Dr. Claudio Naranjo’s internationally renown retreat

Looking for a change of career or a new challenge?

programme begins in the UK in 2012. Organized around his pioneering work on the Enneagram of Personality, it combines practices from the spiritual, therapeutic and expressive traditions. The aim is to

Become part of an exciting and rewarding profession at the leading edge of healthcare for the 21st century, working with people to address their health issues and optimise their health through nutrition and lifestyle management.

explore who we have become, how we became so, and how we might care for the self in a search for greater freedom and flourishing.

ION is the leading Nutritional Therapy training provider in the UK, with more than 25 years’ experience and an international reputation. We are now offering the opportunity to train in Bristol:

The first workshop (SAT 1 – Living from the Passions) takes place on the 27th of March to the 2nd of April.

“ I came away profoundly challenged and expertly guided by his training: inspired to recommit to a lifetime’s work in bringing my authentic self more fully into the world.”

•

Rajan Rasaiah, Coach and Writer For further information: www.naranjoinstitute.org.uk Email: info@naranjoinstitute.org.uk Tel: Charles Keck 07980 066779

Nutritional Therapy Diploma Course starts October 2012 Fully accredited professional training course Part-time study with weekend attendance in Bristol Preparatory Science Access Course begins March 2012 Come and meet us at our Open Day in Bristol on Saturday 4th February at Engineers’ House, Clifton.

Find out more at www.ion.ac.uk or call 0208 614 7815 The Institute for Optimum Nutrition, Avalon House 72 Lower Mortlake Road, Richmond TW9 2JY Spark Event Ad.indd 1

19/10/2011 11:14

Schumacher College

Ecological Facilitation Training in leadership skills for a sustainable future March 5-23, 2012

Teachers: Jenny Mackewn, Toni Spencer, Jean-Claude Audergon and Tim “Mac” Macartney

Please visit www.schumachercollege.org.uk for info and booking, or call us on 01803 865934 9

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10 ignite regular New Dimensions A monthly meeting of like-minded people to hear talks on a wide range of esoteric subjects

Sunday 11th December 2011 THE POWER OF DREAMS Anita Pepper Sunday 15th January 2012 CLAIRVOYANCE AND DEMONSTRATION OF TRANCE Jane Fishlock and Pete Hamblin Sunday 19th February 2012 THE POWER OF PSYCHIC SURGERY Peter Steedman Held at: The Friends’ Meeting House, 126 Hampton Road, Redland, Bristol. BS6 6JE Everyone welcome. Refreshments included 3.00pm – 5.00pm Entrance £5.00

Ffi contact 01749 678834 leasurs@tiscali.co.uk

Mondays Join Bath Positive Living Group for weekly talks of Inspiration. Followed by the opportunity to socialise with like-minded people. Refreshments included. £5. The Coffee Lounge of The Open House Centre @ Manvers Street Baptist Church. 7pm. Ffi: www.BathPLG.co.uk Jacqui - 0786 8890 388 Wednesdays monthly

three months of essential events. to book an ad in our spring issue go to www.thespark.co.uk • 90p a word

december

February - March

Thursday 22 December

Life changing seminars with John Gloster-Smith

December - February

HAWKWOOD

Learn to laugh more for your health, wellbeing & happiness

NEW COURSES FOR YOU! Festive Crafts & Gift Making Day 6 Dec Jesus & Myth 9-11 Dec Painting & Drawing from Life 9-11 Dec Speaking with Confidence 28 Jan Future Self Now 28 Jan Helen Chadwick Songwriting 17-19 Feb Helen Chadwick Concert 18 Feb Metamorphic Technique 25-26 Feb

40 mins from Bristol near Stroud

01453-759034

www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk

Saturday 3 December Christmas Art Market, 11am - 6pm. Ceramics, jewellery, textiles, prints, glass & fine art, whatever your budget is, this is the ideal place to find unique and creative gifts. Live acoustic music, mulled wine and mince pies to get everyone in the Christmas Spirit! Free entry to the public. The Trinity Centre. Trinity Road, Bristol. BS2 0NW. www.3ca.org.uk 0117 935 1200

Experience Bristol laughter workshops with Joe Hoare, 07812 159943, www.bristollaughterclub.com Learn laughter facilitation skills: www.joehoare.co.uk 2012 meetings (3rd Tuesday evening monthly): 17/1, 21/2, 20/3 etc 7.30-9.00pm, prices from £7 Unitarian Chapel, Brunswick Square, BS2 8PE

Connecting to Inner Peace 18 – 19 February 2012 The Point of Awareness 22 – 25 March 2012 “I experienced a very powerful group experience facilitated in a very skilled and exceptional way” Chippenham, SN153RS www.johnglostersmith.com

Friday 6 - Sunday 8 January Saturday 31 December

February - April

A LTERNATIVES

Conscious Clubbing New Year’s Eve party. www.consciousclubbing.co.uk

january Yoga Foundation Course Five weekends in Devon Starting January 2012. Also Teacher Training and Yoga Therapy Courses, Classes and Retreats.

Bristol Feral Choir - group vocal Saturday 10 December For more information improvisation and performances. please call Fun, feral and friendly with clearly 01392 420573 structured led classes. Cost or email £5. Fantastic location at Bristol The Devon info@devonyoga.com School Greenhouse Studio, 292 Ashley www.devonyoga.com Yoga Down Rd. See listing in Voice THE SPARK MAGAZINE section. A membeR oF The InDepenDenT YogA neTwoRk www.bristolferalchoir.org.uk Winter issue 67 email bristolferalchoir@gmail. AGREEMENT FOR 2011-2012 issues January 67, 68, 69, 70 £800 - March com call 07837 599239 or find us on Facebook. * 1/8 page colour Issue 67—upgrade to 1/4 page of

* 110 + log in courses, group & workshops * Ignite diary box Low cost Dance Movement * Website listings Thursdays

Psychotherapy sessions every Thursday. Closed Groups. 10.30-12.00 Women only, Additional: web-profile on website (free=trial loading mid 1.30–3.00pm Mixed Group. -Dec) Limited places available. Thursday 15 December Ffi and self-referral form please contact Kate - 0117 953 2055 or Early Bird deadline for The Spark email admin@dancevoice.org.uk Spring issue. Get the discount then Charity Number 1054109 sit back and start dreaming of blossom, bunnies and blue skies. Sat & every 2nd Wed 0117 914 34 34 sales@thespark.co.uk Your Community Clinic – Making Book and pay for ads online at therapies affordable! Open to all, www.thespark.co.uk offering Low Cost Treatments prices £13–£30. Therapies to suit Mon 19 & Tues 20 December everyone including the pregnant/ elderly. Massage – Deep Tissue, Oriental Facials, Hot Stone, Indian Head, Shiatsu and Thai. Homeopathy, Hopi Candling, Reflexology, Reiki treatments, An ad on these pages could courses and shares. reach 120,000 readers in Ffi Teresa 0798 224 3804 Bath, Bristol, Cheltenham, (Wednesdays BS1 3HY), Frome, Glastonbury, 0780 973 6187 Saturdays (BS2 9QS) Gloucester, Stroud, Taunton, Venues, dates etc: Wells, South Wales, Dorset, www.yourcommunityclinic.com

read all about it!

St James’s Piccadilly, London

Friday 6th - Sunday 8th January 2012 Glastonbury Retreat with Suzanna Viney, Free Love & Veli Martin Keitel • Cleansing & Living Food • Chanting • Fire ceremony • Sunrise walk to the Tor • Sacred Spring Initiation • Breathwork • Dreaming & Space for yourself 12 places only! £220 (£180 before 1 Dec)

Ffi or booking: Suzanna 07968 017740 seviney@mac.com www.thebreathknows.com

Tuesday 10 January ‘Acting 4 Real’ closed 8-week dramatherapy group with Rachel Perry. Tuesdays 7-30-9.30pm. Central Bristol . Scenario Arts in Personal Development 01225 427601 www.dramatherapy.org.uk Rachel@scenario59.freeserve.co.uk Saturday 14 & Sun 15 January New Year’s Yoga weekend with Laura Gilmore. Bristol City Yoga 0117 924 4414 www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/workshops Thursday 19 January Final deadline for The Spark Spring issue. Make a resolution to get your ad sorted today! 0117 914 34 34 sales@thespark.co.uk Book and pay for ads online at www.thespark.co.uk

february

Events inspiring heart, mind and soul

LAMA SURYA DAS Awakening the Buddha Within – 25/6 Feb

CAROLINE MYSS Sacred Contracts – 4 March

MARIANNE WILLIAMSON A Return to Love – 28 April

www.alternatives.org.uk

Friday 3 & Saturday 4 February February is the month of the annual Sevillan Tapas Fiesta in Spain. Inspired by the way the festival brings together community through food, Poco has twinned with the infamous fiesta by serving tapas with local, seasonal ingredients and sustainable fish from British seas. Feb 3rd and 4th brings live music, free tapas, local wines and seasonal cocktails to Stokes Croft. Everyone is invited! Poco: corner of Stokes Croft & Jamaica Street www.pocobristol.co.uk Saturday 4 February The Healing Trust (previously known as the Federation of Spiritual Healers) offers comprehensive training giving you knowledge and confidence in becoming a healer. The courses include many subjects and are informative, uplifting and fun. The Healing Trust is non-denominational and the largest healing organisation in the UK. Your tutors are licensed by The Healing Trust and are healers of long standing. They are very experienced group leaders so your training will be a time of self-healing and growth as well as an opportunity to acquire knowledge and skills. For further information call Chrissy Holmes, Regional Training Officer on 0117 949 7442 or visit www.chrissyholmes.com

Devon, Cornwall and all points inbetween

the Spark: the west’s ethical answer since 1993

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ignite Saturday 11 February

Sunday 26 February

From Movement to Meditation with Chrissy Holmes & Ann Sheldon. Discover a range of simple and effective techniques to help you release everyday cares and simply enjoy being yourself. Taijiwuxigong is a form of Qi Gong designed to create “emptiness” or internal peace. On this workshop you will learn simple Qi Gong exercises to help you feel comfortable and at peace in your body. These are skilfully combined with a selection of Meditation techniques to calm and centre the mind using Imagery, Relaxation & Breathwork. Times: 10am - 4pm. Cost £70. Based in Redland. FFi contact Chrissy on: 0117 949 7442 or visit www.chrissyholmes.com or Ann on 0117 377 0103 or wuxigong@ymail.com

Creating Menstural Health Workshop with Alexandra Pope. Bristol City Yoga 0117 924 4414 www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/workshops

Sat 11 - Sun 12 February Dramatherapy Master Class: ‘A Golden Thread’ following intuition, reclaiming creativity: the Sesame Approach. With Martin Gill, £220, Bristol. Scenario Arts in Personal Development 01225 427601 www.dramatherapy.org.uk Rachel@scenario59.freeserve.co.uk Saturday 18 February So You Want To Be A Freelance Writer? One Day Workshop. The Folk House 10am-3pm, with bestselling author and journalist Deborah Durbin. £49 (includes free book). Learn all the tricks of the trade. 01934 528481 deborah.durbin@yahoo.com Tuesday 21 February Managing Change, 6 workshops about coping creatively with challenging changes, starting February 21st. Contact LuSu Training on 0772 955 5576 or lucy.p-m@hotmail.co.uk Friday 24 February Film: The Moon Inside You. Exploring experiences of menstruation and reflecting on what it means for our western society. Followed by Q&A with featured expert Alexandra Pope. Bristol City Yoga 0117 924 4414 www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/workshops Sat 25 - Sun 26 February ‘Awakening the Buddha Within’ with Lama Surya Das. www.alternatives.org.uk Sat 25 - Sun 26 February Life Healing Event - Holiday Inn Cardiff. Don’t want another year like the last? If you have had enough of poor health, bad relationships, low energy, sadness/unhappiness this is for you. Can it change in just 2 days? Yes, independently evaluated and confirmed effective. Visit www.aplacefortheheart.co.uk for amazing testimonials. Tel: 029 20710744

Spark67.ab27.indd 11

three months of life. to place an ad call 0117 914 3434 or email ads@thespark.co.uk its only 90p a word!

Monday 27 February New Spark out today. Clocks go forward soon - more sunshine and a new mag to read - happy days! 0117 914 34 34 sales@thespark.co.uk Find your nearest stockist at www.thespark.co.uk

march Sunday 4 March ‘Sacred Contracts’ with Caroline Myss. www.alternatives.org.uk Wednesday 7 - Sat 10 March Upledger CranioSacral Therapy training. Our first module, CST1, is in Bristol this spring. Courses are for qualified healthcare practitioners looking to add this gentle and powerful approach to their treatments. See the website for full details about the training and practice of CST: www.upledger.co.uk or contact mail@upledger.co.uk or 01934 733611

april April Bristol City Yoga Teacher Training. 200hr Yoga Alliance Certified Course. 0117 9244 414 bcytraining@gmail.com Friday 13 - Sunday 15 April Dramatherapy Master Class: ‘‘Our Time’ Exploring Sociodrama and Forum Theatre and its application to communities, groups, and cultures. With Martin Gill & Rachel Perry, £320, Bristol. Scenario Arts in Personal Development 01225 427601 www.dramatherapy.org.uk Saturday 14 - Sunday 15 April Three Golden Keys: workshop in Glastonbury. www.williambloom.com Sunday 28 April ‘A return to Love’ with Marianne Williamson. www.alternatives.org.uk

may Saturday 12 - Sunday 13 May

Saturday 10 - Sunday 11 March

The Sword & The Chalice: workshop in Glastonbury. www.williambloom.com

The Endorphin Effect: workshop in Glastonbury. www.williambloom.com

june

Sunday 11 March Woman’s Yoga Workshop with Angela Farmer. Bristol City Yoga 0117 924 4414 www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/workshops Friday 30 - Saturday 31 March Inspiration 4 Ability - a full and exciting programme of music and entertainment plus a wealth of innovative displays and engaging speakers to inspire full and active living - in association with Able Magazine: inspiring people living with disabilities to a full and active life. Featuring Katie Piper from Channel 4, Falklands hero Simon Weston OBE, gold medalist Peter Hull, comedian Laurence Clark, Deaf Men Dancing and much more, including local groups. Supporting Help for Heroes. UWE Bristol Exhibition and Conference Centre, Frenchay, Bristol. For more information www.inspiration4ability.co.uk

90p a word to have your voice heard 0117 914 3434

Saturday 9 - Sunday 10 June Your Heroic Journey: workshop in Glastonbury. www.williambloom.com

july Saturday 21 - Sunday 22 July Strong & Clear: workshop in Glastonbury. www.williambloom.com

classified Wanted Part-Time Storage/Parking for Live in Vehicle Conscious-living, gentle spirit and Ivy the spaniel are in transition, looking for a space to park and store a presentable ‘live in’ vehicle. Will consider anything in the South West. I may stay in the van for short periods or be away since I travel a lot. Prefer something rural and quiet. Self sufficient and off grid but water access useful. Also looking for storage for wood working tools and furniture. Please call Piers 0786 177 5749. Thank you.

Jobs Job With A Difference & Unconventional Hours! Lively disabled woman values: integrity, positivity, and Holistic Living. Loves…. music, good food, gardening, nature and creativity…. Requires PA’s for facilitated assistance with all practical aspects of daily life, personal support., and getting out and about on a 24 x 7 basis (Please note: this is not a care position however). No previous PA experience necessary but basic common sense required of running a home. Involves all types of driving, a varied work day, adaptability, dependability and the capacity to be self-motivated, focused and “on the go”. • Essential requirements: female, 25 yrs+ with a full clean UK driving licence & one year’s driving experience; fluent written and spoken English. • Also: hardworking, practical, a fast learner; with a high level of physical fitness and stamina (comfortable with busy days). • Desirable: Applicants should be mature (not necessarily in years), genuine, flexible, reliable, positive, willing and easy going. Gross Pay: £7.86/£9.16 per hour. Block shifts: 24hrs+. Location: Keynsham/Bristol area. For accessibility reasons, please reply by texting your name and address to receive written details and application pack to 07984 819469 This advert complies with Section 7 (2b) of the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 Opportunity - Andes Mountains. We are seeking energetic people committed to personal growth and motivated to work towards a new world who can contribute with ecological/cultivation skills to ‘Alma’ our beautiful ecological and personal growth centre in the Andes mountains. In return we offer you free board and lodging, plus a high level of personal development guidance (including workshops, individual sessions and guided retreats, adjusted to your needs), plus the chance to live in this marvellous setting (mostly woodland with many fruit trees and grapes and vegetable gardens - all organic) situated at 6,000’ at the end of an Andean valley in Chile, with its pure water, clean air, permanently blue skies, and direct access to large tracts of virgin Andes mountains. Get in touch for more information (including photos) to discover if this is for you and you are for us... John and Veronica, e-mails: almajohnlogan@hotmail.com and veronicatierra@hotmail.com

Rooms & spaces to let Calling all therapists! Come and join a therapy centre with a difference Wellspring Healthy Living Centre is a charity delivering to the Barton Hill community. Wellspring Oasis holistic health centre, is a social enterprise where all profits from room rent go into our charitable work. We are recruiting NOW for therapist to deliver full cost therapies in our beautiful rooms to the wider Bristol community. For further information contact: Amala Bodhi Tel: 0117 3041414 oasis@wellspringhlc.org www.wellspringhlc/oasis.org Heal you, Heal community!

forgot to list your event, course, festival, space for rent or job? don’t panic! even if you miss our print deadline you can still add event ads (the date-specific ones on these pages) and classified ads (situations vacant, rooms to let, houses for sale etc) to our spiffy new website. For just 90p a word you can reach the thousands of unique visitors who click on

thespark.co.uk every week. the Spark: we’ve got a website and we’re going to use it

18/11/11 15:16:22

12 doing it yourself W

e need your DIY feedback! We want your homegrown recipes, your brewing secrets, your madcap inventions, your best top tips. Send it all here and we’ll fish out the best little gems for this page. Email editor@thespark.co.uk

In Search Of The Perfect Compost Toilet by Anton Saxton

The story so far… I built a shed-like structure out of pallets and made sure the floor was high enough off the ground to wheel a bin in underneath. On the floor I attached a box with a hole in it to act as a comfy toilet seat. To stop flies (or rodents!) getting in, I wrapped fly-screening around the sides of the opening of the bin and up to the underside of the platform. If the toilet seat lid is kept shut, no flies should get in (in theory!). I then made a vent flue through a hole in the back of the bin and up through the roof of the whole structure (painted black to absorb the sun) to increase the airflow and direct any smells out of the toilet. I filled the bin underneath with a thick layer of absorbent soak, to give the compost a good start in life. I have fixed a grate into the bottom of the bin, and attached a tap there to drain off the leachate (excess liquid) from the

chicken pox itches My youngest son recently got chicken pox and I found that Tea Tree oil, which is a natural antiseptic, was very effective in relieving the itching. I also used Lavender oil directly into the bath and mixed it with olive oil to help with inflammation on the skin. Something else that helped was pure oats, tied in tights or socks (clean of course), held under running water. The oats helped calm and moisturise his skin.

by Naomi Ross

Spark67.ab27.indd 12

vintage housekeeping tips Good enough for our grannies, good enough for us!

’m on a quest to spend a penny. Our impact on the environment would be vastly reduced if we all switched over to the humble composting toilet. It requires minimal maintenance, no electricity or water, no contact with raw human waste, shouldn’t smell and is relatively safe. What follows is an overview of the method I used to make my very own compost toilet. I hope it will inspire you to find out more about the process. (We would suggest doing further reading and research before you start to build your own – ed)

My essential kit: ● several wheelie bins (about 200-litre size is ideal) ● reclaimed wooden pallets for the raised floor and walls ● roofing sheets (I am planning a living sedum roof but corrugated iron will do) ● plastic flue pipe to vent odours away ● fly-screen material ● a wooden box with a hole and lid (the toilet seat) ● plenty of ‘soak’ (carboniferous material) to add after you use the toilet. I used a combination of straw & sawdust (untreated) but you can also use weeds, leaf mould, charcoal, bark chippings and earth itself ● a custom-made metal grate to separate ‘leachate’ (noxious liquid content) from the solids

Send us your DIY ideas and we’ll give the best one a £25 voucher from renowned independent bookshop Foyles, who’ve just opened their first Bristol branch...

☞ CARpet stains. Dry flour sprinkled and rubbed on carpets and left for some hours will absorb grease or oil accidentally spilt.

☞ Fire, to Light Quickly. Save and dry all orange and lemon peel, nut and coconut shells. They are ideal for lighting or livening up a fire, especially in a sick room, as they do not crackle like wood. ☞ When Knitting Socks, etc. To estimate roughly the amount of wool required to knit a jumper or woolen coat, take a similar garment and weigh it. The same applies to socks. ☞ To Measure Treacle Quickly. Dip the measuring cup or spoon in scalding water and the treacle will turn out quickly.

☞ For Home Dyeing. To get a beige or old ivory shade when dyeing gloves, stockings or lace, put a little cold tea in the water. The dye will be quite permanent. ☞ To Banish Cockroaches and Ants. If they are troublesome in the house, sprinkle ground rice around their haunts. They eat greedily and it swells up inside them and they expire. ☞ Uses of Vinegar. When eggs

bottom of the bin. The leachate needs careful disposal by diluting and pouring it into a leachfield system (a specially made soak-away). This is one of my tasks still to do. Apart from changing the bins when full, I’ll need to make regular checks that enough soak is being used. The only job I’m not looking forward to is ‘tamping down the peaks’, which involves getting a bit of plank screwed to a pole and squashing down the top of the compost pile so it becomes level. Once the bins are filled, I will store them in a warm area while they slow compost, possibly in a polytunnel-type environment. After 12 months this pathogen-rich compost or ‘humanure’ should be ready. Most human pathogens die within a few months, the exception being the roundworm egg which can survive up to 10 years. Hence, the advice is to ONLY apply humanure on trees and shrubs and not on your fruit or vegetables! (We found this reader’s vote of the plushest and best compost toilets around on the permaculture website. http://bit.ly/pve43D – ed). Monkton Wylde offer courses on How To Build A Compost Toilet. Check out their website at www.monktonwyldcourt.co.uk

stick-on double glazing Keep heat in this winter with Secondar y Glazing film or ‘double glazing film.’ Simply stretch the film over your window/ door frame and stick it down with the double sided tape provided. Finally, blow with a hairdryer to seal!

Available from Screwfix for £5.49 for 6 sq metres. (http://bit.ly/sLABlb)

are scarce, add a dessert spoonful of vinegar and one large egg to a plain cake for which, without the vinegar, three eggs would be used. When boiling fish add a few drops of vinegar to the water; the fish will then be quite firm and white.

☞ Silk Garments. Will iron up like new if a little methylated spirit is added to the rinsing water. ☞ Fried Eggs. To prevent fried eggs from breaking or sticking, add a teaspoon of flour to the frying fat.

SHAMPOO: ADDed VOLUME WITH BEER ! by Alex Cater Said to be especially effective on dry or damaged hair, adding volume and shine, beershampoo is easy to make and can be concocted from leftover flat beer. To add beer to your regular shampoo simmer a pint in a pan on a medium heat for around

15 minutes or until ¾ of it has evaporated. Once it has cooled, pour the remaining liquid into a container with your regular shampoo. Aim for a ratio of two parts shampoo to one part beer. Shake well and lather on your locks. Rinse and be amazed… Alex gets in a lather

2 great websites

fix stuff, don’t bin it !

www.howtoﬁxyourstuff.com www.howtomendit.com

18/11/11 15:16:29

Shrine and Sanctuary build special places just for you. Sanctuaries, small and large, to retreat from the world. Shrines for your your contemplations and memories. We offer individual and readymade designs to create personal and sacred gardens.

www.shrineandsanctuary.co.uk

Philosophy

info@shrineandsanctuary.co.uk or tel 0300 303 1022

for living!

new to the studio? Up to £10 off yoga/therapies www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/offers

Does one really know oneself? And the meaning or point of life? Theory is fine, but is there the inner stillness and wisdom yet, to see straight, to live life to the full?

 new studio: now at stokes Croft & Bishopston!

Specialist Yoga Studio Therapy Room Teacher Training Courses info@bristolcityyoga.co.uk www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk

This introductory ten week course is designed to engender fresh perception and cheerful discussion with those interested in seeing past life’s troubled surfaces, past opinions and bias, to what is reliable, lasting and true. ‘Without vision the people perish’ Good use of the mind, and positive emotion can arise from hearing the wisdom of mankind’s great teachers. Explore great schools of thought, and ways of living, from east and west.

16 Backfields Lane, Stokes Croft BS2 8QW 14 Kennington Avenue, Bishopston BS7 9ET 0117 924 4414

CHALICE WELL TRUST

UnitY Conference 2012

Saturday 9th & Sunday 10th June

Is it possible to combine head and heart, the spiritual and the practical? Can one resort to real listening, and sound values for good relationships? What is the nature of beauty, of idea and ideal, what are the roles of science, art, and meditation? Clear the decks - come to the point of life. Prior knowledge of philosophy is not necessary, yet an open mind is always attractive and useful. Marcillio Ficino said

He tastes nothing who does not taste for himself.

Bath. Tuesday, 17th Jan. 6.45 for 7.00

“So powerful is the light of unity

31 Milsom Street, Bath. 07751 959 759 peterderbyshire@ supanet.com

that it can illuminate the whole earth” ` ` Baha’u’llah. Persian Theologian and Philosopher. b.1817

Bristol.Thursday 19th Jan.7.00 for 7.15 Bristol Grammar School, University Rd. 01 225 722 136 haydon.bradshaw@zen.co.uk

Enrol on arrival, or ring or email for more, maps etc

ERVIN LASZLO / GLENNIE KINDRED / STEVE NATION / FLO AEVEIA

www.bathandbristolphilosophy.org

~ 8 Exploratory Workshops ~ 4 Inspirational Speakers ~ 2 Exciting Days ~ 1 Vision

Bath and Bristol School of Philosophy,

branch of The Fellowship of the School of Economic Science. Charity no. 313115

Early-bird tickets £70 until 31/12/2011 £95 from 01/01/2012 Book now @ www.chalicewell.org.uk Tel: 01458 831154

www.philosophycourse.com www.schooleconomicscience.org

Chalice Well Trust, Chilkwell St., Glastonbury BA6 8DD Registered Charity No. 204206 13

Spark67.ab27.indd 13

18/11/11 15:16:31

ignite 14 spotlight dancing into 2012…

three months of essential events and more • 80p a word

Transformative, warming, energising… Melanie West kicks off her outdoor shoes and heads inside to discover and unravel some of the lesser known (and more unusual) ways to dance yourself through the winter months… therapeutic/transformative dance 5 Rhythms

5 Rhythms dancing is a moving meditation practice devised by Gabrielle Roth in the 1960s. It is sometimes also referred to as “the Wave”. The five rhythms are Flowing, Staccato, Chaos, Lyrical and Stillness. Roth developed the practice over time, having watched people moving in certain patterns that seemed to repeat themselves. She has described the dance as a “soul journey” which frees creative expression and enables the dancer to develop their unique path to a blissful state and spiritual release. When I tried 5 Rhythms, our teacher allowed time for us to warm up and connect with our bodies.

kids

Try it with: Bernadette Ryder teaches 5 rhythms at the DMAC studio, Hamilton House, Stokes Croft, Bristol, Tues 7.45-10pm, and Friday 8-10.30pm, £10. tel 07903 497700 www.in-rhythm.com Dawn Morgan teaches ‘Shapeshift Dance’, a form of 5 Rhythms, in Bristol and Stroud. “Respond from your authentic core to open up to the freshness of unhindered movement and dance.” tel 01453 750608, www.shapeshift.co.uk Sue Kuhn’s Ecstatic Dance is a regular 5 Rhythms drop-in class in Bath, Wednesday 6.30-8.45pm, St Mark’s School, Baytree Road, BA1 6ND, £10. tel 01225 465846, www.suekuhndance.com, Leigh Tolson teaches 5 Rhythms in Cotham, Bristol, Wednesdays 7.30-10.30pm (termtimes), £10, email leigh.dance@virgin.net

Biodanza Biodanza was developed by lecturer of psychology and medical anthropology Rolando Toro Araneda, in Chile in the 1960s. The name translates as “life” (bios) and “movement full of meaning” (danza). He proposed that life is comprised of 5 key elements: vitality, sexuality, creativity, affectivity and transcendence, and believed that by fully realising these aspects we can develop our innate potential. Participants of Biodanza tell me that it improves their sense of community and integration with others, and is also a useful tool in personal development. Dancing can be alone, in pairs or as part of a “tribal” group of dancers.

Bernadette Ryder and dancers at DMAC She then played us music which represented each of the five dance rhythms with one flowing into the next. She guided us through the class but made it clear that feeling the music and moving with your breath is more important than knowing exactly which stage you are in at any time. She encouraged us to move alone, together in small groups or in pairs at different times and to follow our instinctive movement. People talk about feeling greater awareness, gaining perspective on their lives and emotional states and feeling joyful release and a sense of peace after doing 5 Rhythms. I liked the natural exploration of body movement and I enjoyed finding ways to dance with others and on my own. I liked the sense of community and personal expression that was encouraged and left feeling very blissed out.

Try it with: Antoinette Williams 0778 478 7635 www.biodanza4uk.com Marita Sanguinetti www.biodanza.org.uk Elizabeth Barnett, December 11, 2011, (and then every 2nd Sunday of the month), St Michael’s Primary School, Park Lane, Bristol, BS2 8BE 1-6pm £30/£25 conc. Bring food if you wish. 0117 955 6297 / 07786 226153, elzbth.barn@tiscali.net, www.biodanzabristol.co.uk

Kundalini Dance Kundalini dance is known as an ‘ecstatic’ dance form which combines dance movement therapy, rhythmic breath, tantric healing and shamanic healing music to explore the body/ mind consciousness and gain insight for healing the body, mind and spirit. Kundalini energy is understood to be an unconscious potent life force that lies coiled at the base of the spine (dormant in the body until it’s awakened). When activated the energy may then rise up through the spine giving expanded consciousness as it passes through our psychic centres, or chakras. Mark Keane is the only practitioner working in Sparkland. He completed his training in 2005 in Byron Bay, Australia. I found Mark’s approach to be open, supportive and playful. He encouraged us to tune in to the energy in our bodies and let our bodies lead us.

The class began by honouring the four compass directions and a brief sharing of our intentions for the class. We then worked together and separately, with vocal guidance from Mark throughout. I enjoyed the communal “fire” dance where dancers raise the group energy. I also enjoyed the freedom of the class and felt relaxed and invigorated afterwards. Try it with: Mark Keane, Mondays, 8pm, Wilder Street Studio, Bristol. Tel 07726 892631, www. sleepingserpent.com Mark also facilitates ‘Conscious Clubbing’ nights at the Wilder St Studio, where dancers socialise in a drug/alcohol-free space.

Children’s creative dance Bristol Community Dance Centre offers creative dance classes for children on Saturdays. 10.3011.15am is 5 to 7-yr-olds, 11.20-12.20am is 8-10 yrs. BCDC say “These classes are friendly, nurturing classes that enable children to revel in dance. Sessions will help their creativity, confidence and interaction with other children”. Jacobs Wells Road, Hotwells, Bristol BS8 1DX, tel 0117 929 2118, www.bristolcommunitydancecentre.co.uk

Somaterra Carla Esteves runs a nine-week dance journey for women called “Inhabiting the Feminine Earth Body”. In her unusual work Carla combines personal and ecological awareness through dance. She says: “Somaterra offers a practice that helps women/men to get into their bodies as a gateway for an encounter with the natural world. Our attitude to our bodies reflects our attitude to the earth and one another. Inhabiting and nurturing our bodies/minds/soul is the first step towards relating to the Earth ecologically from within. Women’s cycles, for example, are not only a deep source of connection to the Earth’s natural cycles and female wisdom but also great teachers of sustainability!” www.somaterra.org

wild fusion Tribal fusion bellydance This form of belly dance came out of the Bay Area of San Francisco in the late ’80s. It takes influence from street dance, hip hop, tango and contemporary dance, using traditional Egyptian belly dance movements (in the 1800s women were banned from dancing in Egypt so the men learnt the dance to preserve it). The music used in tribal fusion is modern and the overall feel is contemporary bohemian. The class began with some conditioning exercises to strengthen our core, legs and hips. We were shown how to isolate certain muscles, how to move our abdominals and how to execute ‘pops’ and ‘locks’ (there’s the hip hop influence!). The class is open to men and women, of all abilities. We were encouraged to draw on our own experience of different dance styles to bring our own interpretation to tribal fusion. Try it with: Victoria (Pearl Boheme), DMAC, 07885 781088, www.pearlboheme.co.uk

Eastern workout Bhangra dance fitness Bhangra is a form of folk music that originated in the Punjab region north of India. The ‘Masala Bhangra Workout’ was devised by Sarina Jain (the “Jane Fonda” of India) and combines some nifty dance moves with a high energy, cardiovascular workout. In the class I went to, we tied scarves to our hands and placed bhindis on our foreheads, which was a nice way to get us into the mood. We danced for an hour, (with a short break in the middle), fitting traditional bhangra moves into a dance routine which needed stamina and focus. Our soundtrack ranged from traditional bhangra music, to a drum & bass fusion and we twirled, stamped and shook our booty through a happy and boisterous hour. One to shake away the winter blues! Try it with: Monika, DMAC Bristol, Tuesdays 6.30pm, www.bristoldancefitness.com

The lost dance? We’ve given you a taster of the kind of transformative and unusual dance opportunities available in Sparkland but this is not an exhaustive guide. We’re going to post this article on our website and we invite you to send us info on your favourite classes. If you know of any missing gems, then please add them in the comments section: it’s really easy to do and will make a great resource for dancers new and old across the region. Apologies to anyone who feels they should have been included in the print article! www.thespark.co.uk

Dawn Morgan of Shapeshift Dance photo: Ben Jarlett

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high energy Lindy Hop Lindy Hop (or Jitterbug as it’s also known), has been through many incarnations. Originating in Harlem, New York in the ’20s and ’30s it forms part of the group of dances that include swing and jive. Its popularity has risen in recent years due in part to the many video clips available online. The roots are African with a small pulse or beat emanating through the moves in a four-beat rhythm. In this way Lindy Hop can be danced fast to an eight-beat rhythm enabling flashier, faster moves for the show dances. As a social dance it can be danced at whatever speed you choose and classes give you the chance to have several dance partners to practise with. Ann and Graeme of “Hopping Mad” currently run classes in Bath and Bristol for beginners and intermediates with a short freestyle dance space offered after each session. My beginner’s

Dance centres in Sparkland

class guided me through several basic steps where the male dancer generally took the lead. These moves can be put together to develop a sequence. There are no set patterns or fixed sequences: the idea is that each dance pair can create their own unique combination of moves to show off their skills when they hit the floor! Try it with: Ann Peskett and Graeme Puckett. Bristol: Mondays 7.45-8.40pm (Beginners practice 8.40-9pm; Improvers 9-9.50pm; intermediate practice last Monday each month 9.50-10.30pm). The Elmgrove Centre, Redland, Bristol £6 per class/ students £4. Bath: Tuesdays, same dance times, at Scouts HQ Cheltenham/Gloucester: beginners 7pm, intermediate 8pm, advanced 9pm. £5 per class, £8 per two classes (students £4/£6), freestyle dancing between classes. Dowty Sports and Social Club, Staverton GL2 9QD

Lindy Hoppers Graeme Puckett and Ann Peskett

Dance movement psychotherapy

DMAC launched in 2010: a new dance studio space in central Bristol offering dance, yoga and performance arts from the world over. DMAC is made up of a collective of local artists, who hail from a diverse cultural and ethnic background, and the space hosts a wealth of creative classes, ranging from African dancing and drumming, to street dance, capoeira, hip hop, 5 rhythms, belly dance, ragga, hip hop, lindyhop, bhangra, yoga, pilates and more. DMAC UK, Hamilton House, above “The Canteen”, Stokes Croft, Bristol, BS1 3YQ, www.dmacuk.com

Bristol Community Dance Centre was formed in 1976 and has been at its current site (a former Victorian Baths sat atop an Elizabethan theatre!) since 1979. It has survived thanks to a dedicated staff and public support, and has played host to pioneering teachers and a wealth of dance forms from all over the world for over 30 years. It introduced salsa, capoeira and breakdance to the region in the ’80s, and has supported and nurtured students of contemporary and contact improv dance forms (amongst others) for many years. Jacobs Wells Road, Hotwells, Bristol BS8 1DX, tel 0117 929 2118 www.bristolcommunitydancecentre.co.uk

Dance Voice is the South West’s pioneering Dance Movement Psychotherapy centre. DMP is a process that uses movement and dance to facilitate emotional, physical, social, mental and spiritual growth. The centre provides a safe space where clients can explore their own feelings and behaviours through physical movement, with expert support and creative input from trained dance movement psychotherapists. If you are interested in DMP, you can access Dance Voice through one-on-one therapy sessions. They also welcome volunteers into their group sessions (to work with clients with learning difficulties) on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday mornings. Any volunteer/student has to be CRB checked but is never left alone in a client group. Get in touch to find out more… Contact Kate Marsh on 0117 953 2055 or email her at admin@dancevoice.org.uk www.dancevoice.org.uk

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The Relaxation Centre To relax is to enjoy life

16 q&a

Liz Crow artist & activist hadn’t dared believe would happen. I’d like people to talk, listen, find out more, find courage to be part of a solution. What drives you mad? Waste, of all kinds. You see a hundred different, brilliant, change-making, community projects putting in for just half a dozen grants. All that energy and possibility for change that is so easily lost. What’s been your most memorable trip? Fresh in my mind is a visit to Holton Lee, near Poole. It’s an Site of Special Scientific Interest – woods, heathland and saltmarshes – all accessible via a Tramper (an off-road mobility buggy). I just spent a weekend there with my daughter and two friends, deer watching, midnight rambling and disco dancing in the car park outside a nearby wedding. Daylight, fresh air, green surroundings and more laughter than in ages.

Hidden in a quiet street in Clifton the Relaxation Centre is so much more than a health spa – it is a secret which you discover. We are an oasis in the middle of the city. A place to let the cares of the day slip away and replenish your vital energy. There are only a few decisions you’ll have to make. A sauna perhaps? Maybe a steam? Relax in the hot tub or are you brave enough for the cold plunge pool? We also have a blissful floatation room and a full range of treatments including Holistic Massage, Reflexology and Hot Stone Therapy.

Interviewed by Fiona McClymont • photo Jo Halladey

Relaxation makes the perfect Christmas gift...

Liz Crow, 47, is an artist/activist, writer/director, and founder of Roaring Girl Productions. She works in film, sound, performance and text. In 2009 she occupied the forth plinth in Trafalgar Square, wearing Nazi regalia while sitting in her wheelchair, to bring attention to the anniversary of Aktion T4, the Nazi programme of extermination of disabled people. She lives in Bristol with her daughter.

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What’s best about the South West? The ingenuity and boldness here: a lot of people see that something is needed and they make it happen. There’s real passion, humour, drive and a community spirit in this area that I really like and admire.

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What would you like to see more of? Genuinely inclusive and accessible transport. We’re way off that target at the moment. I’d love to see trams too, wouldn’t that be great? Plus more car-free/reduced days, more playing out and more street parties! What is your greatest achievement? I’d say my daughter has to be my number one achievement. Can I say I ‘achieved’ her?! I’m sort of in awe of her: she’s got this instinctive inclusiveness, a very strong sense of justice, a vivid imagination, a wicked sense of humour, and a streak of courage as well. What inspires you? Time spent with the sort of people who have a sense of what’s possible and act on it. Also, I’m inspired by quiet spaces, whether it’s sitting by the ocean or in my garden. What are the themes in your work? Identity, resistance and survival. People think I make work about disability but actually I make work about being human, about finding a place in the world. I often portray people who have to become non-conformist to be themselves. What’s been your biggest mistake? Not moving on, when at times I probably

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How do you relax? Out on my trike: sky above me, green surrounding me and the path below a blur of speed. Wind in my hair; ideally a sea view, waves crashing, salt in the air.

should have. I’m a bit of a terrier and I stick with stuff, sometimes beyond the point of effectiveness or beyond what’s good for me. Although that same pig-headedness and resolve are also what enable me to do the things I have done.

What gets you into trouble? Things like chaining myself to buses! In the Direct Action Network, we used to catch buses and handcuff ourselves to them to protest at inaccessible transport. It was really effective too.

What is the idea behind your Resistance film-based installation? Its starting point is Aktion T4, the Nazi campaign of mass-murder that targeted disabled people. This campaign preceded the larger Holocaust and the methods used, the machinery they set-up to exterminate large numbers of people, became a blueprint for everything that followed. Had people intervened at the very beginning, when this was happening to disabled people, whatever happened next would have been different.

What was it like being up on the plinth in Trafalgar Square? It was one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever done, it took a week for my heart rate to return to normal afterwards! I was up there on Saturday evening, pub kicking-out time, it was dark and the floodlights were on: you’re very exposed. I had no way of knowing if people would ‘get it’ or if they would just throw bottles. But in the event, the response was amazing. I got messages from all different countries; people had got up in the middle of the night to watch and Twitter apparently went ballistic during the hour I was up there. The Guardian did a round-up of all the plinth contributors and I made it into the top-ten. The film of it is still being used in colleges and universities all over the place.

Why tell the story now? Because it’s not just about history; the justifications used back then – of disabled people being burdens or living lives of misery – feel really familiar because the same kind of values are still deeply embedded today. If you take any group of people and work to make them “other” – whether it’s “scroungers”, “workshy”, “tragic” or “brave” – it’s then easy to make them less than human, and the next stage of abuse becomes easier. The seemingly most innocuous thing can open the floodgates to something so much worse. I wanted to represent a hidden history, to commemorate the people who died, but I also wanted to look at what the history means for us now and, crucially, to do something that gives people some sense of a direction they can take in changing things. What can people do to change things? Notice things; notice when something is keeping people out and take responsibility for fixing it. Become an ally, speak out, don’t leave it to the person who’s facing discrimination to sort it out. People say to me all the time (when I’ve encountered discrimination) “Ooh, you should write a letter about that”. Well, I’ve been writing letters for years, so how about you write the letter this time! Legislation is important but can only ever take us part of the way. The motivation for deeper change relies on the human connection. Sometimes we have to take risks – the risk we’ll make a wrong judgement – rather than to hold back and do nothing at all. Hopefully, that’s where Resistance comes in – it seems to resonate with people at a level I’d hoped for but

What’s your favourite book? I can’t pick just one. For starters, Barbara Kingsolver’s The Bean Trees (but actually, anything of hers); Armistead Maupin’s beautiful Maybe the Moon, and Harriet McBryde Johnston’s Too Late to Die Young. What’s your greatest fear? Other than flying, it’s the idea that however hard I work, I’ve not been as effective as I might have been. What has life taught you? Firstly, not to say ‘whether’ but to say ‘how’. It’s not about whether this thing could be changed and sorted, but about how do we do it: get practical. Secondly, when you can’t conform, what that teaches you is that you don’t have to. It gives a kind of permission to break the rules, and there can be quite an amazing freedom in that. To see a short film of Liz’s work visit http://vimeo.com/3177051, also see www.roaring-girl.com Liz’s installation ‘Resistance’ is at Bristol’s M-Shed (alongside associated events) from the Jan 5-Feb 5, which covers Holocaust Memorial Day. “Inspiration 4 Ability”, an event providing inspiration for people living with disabilities, will be held on March 30-31 at UWE Conference Centre. www.inspiration4ability.co.uk

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18 20 planet

Got a passion for green issues and experience of writing? email editor@thespark.co.uk

routes manoeuvre photo: Bristol City Council 2011

Kesty Morrison gets out on her bike and asks: three years on from Bristol’s £11.4 million Cycling City grant, what has changed for the city’s cyclists?

street lighting Cycling City has added from he Bristol Cycling City project began Speedwell to Easton, especially in what was in 2008, the brainchild of a Labour known as ‘the tunnel of doom’ between government promised an £11.4 million Fishponds and Staple Hill. From there until grant. Ben Hillsdon, previous employee of Bath, however, you are pretty much on your the Cycling City project, delicately avoids own. There is some lighting at the Soundwell my questions about why funding ran out ring road, at Warmley and Bitton, but the this March. His current employer, The Local rest is a fairly hair-raising, pitch-black ride, Sustainable Transport Fund, will get top-up especially if you manage to break both your funding from the department of Transport, front and rear lights, as I did and have to cycle and there will be investment from Bristol and the rest of the route like one of Tolkein’s Dark South Gloucestershire councils this year, he Riders! Apologies to all other cyclists on the says. I can’t help feeling like there’s a large track that day: I was as terrified as you were. elephant in the room, and an image of David Cameron trying to balance on a unicycle keeps popping into my head. urban freewheelin’ Luckily a lot can be accomplished in three River Street, behind Cabot Circus, is the start years. Since the Cycling City project started of a cycling commuter route called the Frome in 2008, 36 new or improved routes have Greenway, has been redesigned to make it been designed and constructed in the Bristol less traffic-heavy (visual marks for cars have area. The main routes connect various points been taken away). The street leads on to the outside the city to cycle paths leading into redesigned cycle path which joins with the the centre, to enable trajectory of the river Frome. more freewheeling I managed to get horribly commuting. My lost on this route around St “If you cycle at night you’ll really mission? To get out Mark’s Road in Easton but appreciate the street lighting and try ’em all! I should point out here that that’s been added to the ‘tunnel Cycling City’s my map and sign-reading of doom’ between Fishponds and website is choc-a-block skills are likely to blame. On Staple Hill…” with maps and routes the upside, I did pass two and possibilities. For eight-year-old Sikh boys in those numerically traditional dress and one of stunted cyclists (like myself) the Festival Way them said to the other in complete earnestness beckons, as it’s all colour-coded and clearly “Mike Tyson is my cousin.” Now you don’t marked with bike symbols (no route numbers get that in a car. needed!). Whitchurch Way runs from the back of Temple Meads beside the river Avon and into Arnos Vale, complete with little pictures on days by the river the ground of cyclists and pedestrians smiling The Festival Way was created in conjunction and holding hands. I didn’t try to emulate this with sustainable transport charity (and bike part (the moment never felt quite right), but track pioneers) Sustrans. Also known as The I certainly shared a smile or two with passing Chocolate path, it’s as tasty as it sounds and walkers. The route takes in a section of the runs from the new M Shed along the river A4 that has had extensive improvement work to the Create Centre – where there is even a as part of The Greater Bristol Bus Network handy bike shop – past the brand new pump professional development showcase, seeing tracks under Brunel Bridge, and on to UWE’s one lane of traffic removed to make a lane Bower Ashton campus. By daytime, a cheerful solely for the use of buses and bicycles. journey filled with small kids on scooters, The Temple Meads end of the Whitchurch painfully cute sausage dogs and, in my case, Way leads neatly to the Bristol-Bath cycle one glam rock-looking dude with a pink path, indicating how easily most routes link basket. By night it is beautifully lit with small, up, and how accessible the whole city is by in-road white lights giving what could be a bike. Bristol really is a cycling city, and it looks sketchy ride quite a magical feel. set to stay that way. When I lock my bike to a One of Cycling City’s first projects was the stand, I look down and there is a little sticker striking Meads Reach Bridge, which somehow thanking me for not driving. You are very combines looking posh, space age and a bit welcome, Bristol. It really is a pleasure. like a cheese grater. The Bridge forms the start of a new access route to the popular Bristolwww.betterbybike.info Bath cycle path. If you have attempted this www.sustrans.org.uk route in the dark you can appreciate the www.bristolcyclingcampaign.org.uk

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BOOK REVIEW: ‘On Bicycles’

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(edited by Amy Walker) by Adamx Golding

I’ve worked in the cycling industry for over a decade, and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘On Bicycles: 50 ways the new bike culture can change your life’. I’ve shared several chapters with people who are new to cycling and it has proved accessible for them and interesting to a few old hands as well. There are four main sections: about freedom and empowerment from cycling; about the practicalities of buying and running a bicycle; looking good on your bike; and finally, cycling culture and community (social programs to learn cycling, riding safely to school and work etc). The section about the politics of cycling, advocacy and planning cities for cyclists is particularly intriguing (although quite north-west US-centred, like its predecessor The Whole Earth Catalogue) which can be slightly annoying but this doesn’t take away from its relevance or its positive message: that cycling is good for us and for our cities, and ultimately, for our planet.

by Rachel Fleming

The South West has long been a hotbed for green building, with local experts in everything from cob, straw-bale and timber building, to eco-design and low-carbon planning regs. So perhaps it’s no surprise that the first national qualification in natural building techniques should start here, bringing together a full spectrum of expertise in traditional craft skills that use local and sustainable materials. Based at the Schumacher College in Devon, this part-time certificate is the forerunner of what will eventually be the first recognised Certificate in Natural Build and a linked MSc programme in Eco-Design and Natural Build awarded through Plymouth University. “For individuals, families and modern society at large, there is a growing movement to find our place on the Earth,” says course leader Robert Somerville. “This is part of the inspiration for this course, which is for beginners and established building professionals alike.”

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Rural voice Noreen Wainwright gives us a window on her world as she beds down a shedful of cows…

inter on the farm is no place for the faint-hearted. The cows are usually finally inside by early November. They know at some level about the seasons. I am not being whimsical here; any farmer would tell you the same. At the other end of the year “they can smell the grass growing,” my husband says, (and believe me he hasn’t got a whimsical bone in his body). The cows change as the spring creeps in. As the outside world changes, they become restless, and certainly noisier. That is why no-one will ever convince me that zero-grazing is the way to go in dairy farming, (where the cows stay inside all year through in a controlled environment). As the nights draw in, and the weather changes, the same thing happens in reverse. You battle between trying to keep them out just a bit longer, to save the winter feed and the inevitability of bringing them in. Then the winter work really begins. Bedding down the main shed full of cows is a job and a half. You dread it, but it reminds you a bit of going for a long run: a mixture of the hellish and the pleasurable. I do find it satisfying though: perhaps because I find something innately sensuously pleasing in straw. The stuff just looks so

clean and comfortable, for a short while, at least, until the cows have spent some time in it. The other good thing about bedding down is that no matter how cold the day, the physical work warms you through in a way that little else will do when the temperature is below freezing. Working in the smaller sheds is slower and pushing a wheelbarrow in the ice is truly hazardous. Everything takes so long and it’s easy to see how some farmers, particularly in the past, became quite insular, thinking the world revolved around the farm. It is the daily grind that does that to you; the feeling of the world shrinking and the constant realization that the work is there waiting, no matter how you are feeling. But that’s only one side of the story. Work such as this can bring its own strange rewards. You may be reluctant to get started, but the rhythm of repetitive manual work can be soothing. Your mind becomes free in ways it never does when you’re sitting in front of the TV. You see fast results and there are moments of absolute joy: quiet pleasurable moments that make it worthwhile. For me there is something magical about seeing the animals in the sheds at Christmas time, an elemental simplicity and truth. If that seems a bit fey, there is also the very earthy pleasure of sitting in front of a roaring fire after a hard day’s winter work!

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20 social change

squat’s happening S

quatting has a long and proud history in England, dating back to the days of the Peasants’ Revolt in 1381. Gerrard Winstanley and the Diggers, Robert Louis Stevenson and Joe Strummer all squatted, yet if the coalition government get its way, squatting could soon be a thing of the past. This summer the government published a consultation paper entitled Options For Dealing With Squatting. These detailed a range of new measures, the most significant of which is to criminalise trespass. Traditionally squatting is a matter for civil law, in other words, a private dispute between owner and squatters. But if the proposals go ahead, anyone who enters a private property without the owner’s prior consent will be committing a criminal offence. At a time when Britain is facing a housing shortage and there remains over 700,000 empty properties in the UK (over 70,000 in the South West in 2010, up from 60,000 in 2004) it seems to be a particularly short-sighted (and mean spirited) response to what has often been seen as a practical solution to homelessness.

photo Alex Cater

In light of government proposals to criminalise squatters, Will Simpson speaks to local activists about the positive side of squatting

local support for squatters

Ben Richie, one of the main organisers of Bristol Housing Action, feels that change could have dire consequences. “It will be disastrous, not only for the 150 or so people that are squatting now in Bristol and Bath but for those who could potentially use it as a way of getting out of the cold this winter.” Bristol Housing Action is a project that supports those who need accommodation via the city’s small but supportive squat scene. “We identify empties and help people move into them,” explains Ben. “We do buildings up, deal with court cases and disputes with the owners. And we deal with the social problems that arise with people being homeless.” For Ben, squatting is one solution to help alleviate the city’s severe lack of cheap accommodation. “Housing is in a terrible state,” he maintains. “There are more and more people living in poor accommodation or sleeping on friends’ floors.”

image problem

Squatting has a poor image in the mainstream public consciousness, characterised by hollowed out, dilapidated houses full of stoned hippies or disorganised dog-on-astring types. Of course, the reality is that squatters have to be extremely organised. Archer has been squatting for five months in a house in Bedminster and is tired of the misplaced clichés. “There is a whole bunch of extra stuff you have to do in a squat that you don’t have to in a private rental,” she says. “You have to do research on the house, find out who owns it, and be pro-active in maintaining and repairing it. You have to sort out electricity and water. And someone always has to be there. We all work in our squat. I’m not interested in trashing a house: a house is a potential home for me. Since we’ve been here we’ve fixed up the yard and made it look brighter. We’ve got to know people in the neighbourhood and I think they appreciate what we have done.” Another myth is that any home could be squatted if the owner goes on holiday or leaves it vacant temporarily. In reality, most squats are properties that have been left neglected for years, sometimes decades. Often the owner only sits up and takes notice once squatters move in. This is what happened to Archer’s squat, which is ‘owned’ by an aggregation of private companies and banks. “We have had to deal with several layers of bureaucracy. We’ve been in communication with them and have offered to come to a

Spark67.ab27.indd 20

rental agreement – I don’t have anything against paying rent in principle – but I haven’t even received a reply.” Milhouse is another Bristolian squatter. “If a building is empty and the owner doesn’t want to put it to good use, then let us do something good with it,” he says. He cites examples such as The Free Shop on Stokes Croft, Bristol and the ‘Magic Roundabout’ site near Temple Meads, a squat that was

“This government hasn’t got a private housing building programme that’s worth talking about and private landlords’ rents are really high. So where do they expect people to go?” cleaned up and turned into a performance space for two months last year. “Squatting is about investing in the infrastructure with our mental and physical energy and sheer perseverance. It’s a creative act.” But instead of collaboration, the government proposals seem like a recipe for confrontation. “The government isn’t providing any new council housing,” says Ben Richie. “It hasn’t got a private housing building programme that’s worth talking about and private landlords’ rents are really high. So where do they expect people to go?” And it probably won’t prevent squatting anyway. It certainly didn’t dissuade Archer, who was evicted two days after the Spark spoke to her, only to move on to another squat. “It’s not something I’ll do forever,” she says, “but it suits my lifestyle at the moment. It may well be that the law is passed, but it won’t stop squatters.” Radical Routes www.radicalroutes.org.uk Bristol Housing Action www.public-interest.co.uk/bham Homesless UK advice www.homelessuk.org Squatters Action for Secure Homes www.squashcampaign.org http://squatorrot.wordpress.com (celebrating buildings brought back into use by squatters)

BS3 vision by Alex Cater

ew proposals to create Bristol’s first Zero Carbon community have been introduced into a long running debate about the future of the BS3 campus site in Bedminster (as mentioned in Spark 66). Bristol City Council have been consulting with the local community and public sector landowners over the land for two years, since Marksbury Road College on the site closed. The 25-acres are owned by three entities: the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA, who own the college campus and connected buildings); BCC (who own the 15-acre ‘Northern Slopes’, which includes 70 demolished council flats and disused allotments); and Knightstone Housing Association, who own 60 boarded-up social housing flats. The BS3 Campus group was created by architect David Parkes and includes many of Bristol’s movers and shakers active in the fields of sustainable development, self-build and cohousing. The group want to develop community-led self-build and co-housing projects to create affordable homes for local people. The site would be owned and managed by a community interest company (CIC) to preserve its long-term integrity, and prevent any piecemeal sell-off to private developers. At a public meeting in October architects David Parkes and Edward Nash put forward the plans, supported by experts on self-building and co-housing Jackson Moulding and Neil Elliot. Local Liberal Democrat councillor Mark Bailey asked whether self-build housing would be accessible to those on low incomes. Parkes believes that on this point, they can deliver. “We have to offer better models for housing and community than those provided by the main housebuilders, whose motive is profit. There is political concensus here for a bottom-up approach to regeneration and this is the perfect opportunity to show that this is possible.” Add your voice to the debate!

www.bs3campus.org.uk www.urbaninitiatives.co.uk/kw www.northern-slopes-initiative.co.uk

BOOK REVIEW: Memoirs of a Black Englishman by Paul Stephenson OBE & Lilleith Morrison

his latest offering from Bristol’s best loved chroniclers of counterculture, Tangent Books, is a memoir from third generation black Englishman Paul Stephenson OBE. One of the leading black civil rights activists of his generation, Paul led the Bristol Bus Boycott of the 1960s which was instrumental in ending discrimination against non-white bus drivers and conductors. Born in 1937, Paul was working as a youth worker in Bristol in 1963 when he started the campaign against the Bristol Omnibus Company. With the support of local MP Tony Benn, Labour Party leader Harold Wilson and others, the Bristol Bus Boycott forced the company to change its racist policy. Paul became a life-long activist and has dedicated much of his professional life to improving the lives of young black people through sport, music and education. He was the first black person to be given the Freedom of the City of Bristol in December 2008, and in 2009 was awarded his OBE. review by Vicki West ‘Memoirs of a Black Englishman’ is available from Foyles Bookshop, (Quaker Friars, Bristol), published by Tangent Books, £9.99 tel 0117 972 0645 www.tangentbooks.co.uk

Transition times…

Rachel Savage on Cam & Dursley’s Transition journey and their first action

householders, preferably living ransition Cam & Dursley is now fully up and in similarly sized houses, get running and we have embarked on our first together and sign up to be part of community project. We’re lucky enough the project. Each group nominates a to have a sustainable energy expert in our midst. co-ordinator. Then all they need is a His name is Richard Hellen and more often than regular meter reading (electricity, gas not you’ll find him leaping off the side of a nearby or both) and copies of their energy hill in the name of paragliding. But he also runs bills for the last 12 months. an sustainable energy consultancy and is a board Each household gets a number and is asked member for Low Carbon South West. Richard to submit meter readings presented a pilot energy project to their co-ordinator that he would like to trial “Using this scheme, our once a month. through our Transition group. sources calculate that most The co-ordinator It’s called Neighbourhood sends the figures to a Energy Watch (NEW) and it’s households should expect to number-cruncher (in our case, pretty straightforward. Based make savings of around Richard) who puts them into a on similar projects around the £120 a year on their graph and sends it to the group. world, it was set up to help energy bills” The group gets together and people be aware of how much compares its energy use, has energy they are using and – a bit of a social and works out more importantly – how much what they’re doing that works or doesn’t work. it’s costing them. If it’s a success here, Richard They also get to try out energy saving tips from the will be rolling it out around the South West and project. If this doesn’t inspire you, consider that, beyond. according to our sources, most households should Now usually I struggle to get excited about expect to make savings of around £120 a year on my gas and electricity meter readings, but I’ve their energy bills! decided to take stock of my energy use. With We’re also busy pulling our Steering Group all of us feeling the pinch, and with more and together. If you live in Cam or Dursley and would more of families heading towards fuel poverty, like to find out more, please get in touch. it’s something we’ve all got to get a bit pro-active about. Plus, this initiative is sociable and easy Email transitiondursley@gmail.com to organise. How it works is simple. A group of Facebook: Transition Dursley

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22 food Dave Hamilton on vitamin-D-rich edible fungi for enhancing your mood during the cold months

magic mushrooms I

n ancient times, as early man moved from their tropical homeground in Africa to colder climates, they experienced less light during the day and more defined seasons. We coped with this new land and cold, prehistoric winters by wearing animal skins and lighting fires under the chilly night sky.

moody humans

When most animals move to colder climates they adapt physically by growing more fat or thick fur. We humans are still very much creatures of the African plains, however, and as such we Europeans haven’t truly adapted to the dark winter nights at the top of the Northern Hemisphere. One of our major design flaws is that we are unable to convert sunlight into Vitamin D during the winter. Low Vitamin D status can mean low mood. Some studies suggest that Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD for short), which leaves people feeling depressed in the winter, could be exacerbated by low levels of sunlight. But what has all this got to do with mushrooms? Well, mushrooms have been found to be one of the only non-animal

sources of Vitamin D. This is good news for vegetarians, and particularly vegans, as many food sources of Vitamin D are of animal origin. These include liver (and cod liver oil), fish and egg yolks, with lesser amounts in milk and margarine. So, will a double helping of mushrooms every day see you skipping through the January Oyster drizzle and laughing mushrooms in the face of the winter blues? Well, unfortunately not quite. Most mushrooms grow in the dark and, like us, they need sunlight to make Vitamin D in a form we can absorb. Without sunlight, levels of useful Vitamin D can be disappointingly low. The typical button mushroom, for example – the kind we would commonly find in a supermarket – only contains 4-5% of the daily Vitamin D we need. However, contrary to popular belief, not all mushrooms grow in the dark and most are quite happy in the presence of light. By their very nature, wild mushrooms grow outdoors. Oyster mushrooms, for example, grow all year round and take in UV rays throughout their life. As vitamin D is quite stable, it will be

present in dried mushrooms, so foraged oyster mushrooms may well be a handy source of Vitamin D. Although it can only be counted as anecdotal evidence, I have found that during the years where I’ve had a fresh and dried source of oyster mushrooms at home, my mood has improved during the winter. However, as a sometime sufferer of SAD, I also use a UV lamp (or SAD lamp) in addition to nutritional efforts.

“Commercial growers in the US have started to cotton on to this and have been exposing their mushrooms to UV lamps” A recent study at Pennsylvania State University found that exposing growing mushrooms to UV lamps significantly increased the amount of usable Vitamin D they contained thereafter. They also found that, like us, when the mushrooms were exposed to UV rays they turned brown. So they basically get a tan! Commercial growers in America have cottoned on to this and have been exposing their mushrooms to UV lamps – thereby increasing their Vitamin D levels – and marketing them as such. Home growers can easily benefit from this knowledge as shitake logs are often kept outdoors in full sunlight and dried summer shitake mushrooms can be kept for winter use. Alternatively, mushrooms from homegrown kits, such as those for sale in the South West from Fungi Futures, can be exposed to UV lamps in the winter to enable the mushrooms

Shitake mushrooms to absorb the light and form higher levels of usable Vitamin D. If you suffer from SAD, you may find that a combination of sitting in front of a SAD lamp AND increasing your intake of vitamin D through either mushrooms exposed to UV light and/or Vitamin D tablets, may alleviate some of your symptoms this winter. Even if you aren’t a SAD sufferer, winter mushrooms can have all-round health benefits, as they are a low-fat source of protein and a good source of many hard-to-find micro and macro nutrients, including selenium and zinc. So if you’re feeling blue this winter, why not chuck some mushrooms in that morning fry-up? www.fungi-futures.co.uk use recycled coffee grounds to feed their sustainable mushroom farm

fungal foray Not for the first time, our designer Andy Ballard disappears into the woods

t was from a forager’s perspective that I went along to Tyntesfield’s ‘Fungal Foray,’ hoping to find fungi for my pot. I was a bit disappointed when I realised the focus for the walk was more on identification than rustling up culinary treats but under the expert guidance of John Bailey and his two assistants, I realised I had much to gain from getting better acquainted with all the mycological inhabitants of Tyntesfield’s beautiful woodland, including those that weren’t destined for my plate as wild food. The conditions for finding an abundance of fungi on the

weekend of the walk weren’t ideal: we’d had the hottest couple of days in October since records began with very little rain. Fungi fruit in damp conditions after rain so I for one wasn’t expecting an abundance of ’shrooms. Thankfully, just a short walk into the trees I was proved wrong and we found several species of fungi which were speedily identified by John and the other guides. Memorising Latin names of plants is never easy, so there were sighs and murmurings of recognition once the guides had given us the commonor-garden name of various fungi. One of our first finds was a Clitocybe Nebularis or the ‘Clouded Agaric’, which although our guide said was poisonous, many consider to be edible.

firelighting fungi

Chicken of the Woods

Spark67.ab27.indd 22

From my perspective as an enthusiastic wild food gatherer John’s key knowledge in identifying fungi firstly by name then by edibility was invaluable. A later find of a beautiful bright orange ‘Chicken of the woods’ fungi caused me some confusion when John said it was mildly poisonous. I’d chowed down on some a few months before and found it delicious. (I’d used an identification book and got the green light to eat it from that). It seems like you can’t be too careful when harvesting mushrooms and fungi

to eat. Our guides certainly weren’t about to encourage us one bit! Given the dry conditions I was pleasantly surprised to find a mass of ‘Jews Ears,’ a jelly fungi which resembles – if not exactly a human ear – then certainly a rat’s or mouse’s ear. Previously I’ve only ever found these fungi after heavy rain and always on elder trees. From a culinary viewpoint they’re great added to Chinese-style soups and stir fries, but once again, John’s expression told me he wouldn’t be rushing home to try it!

“King Alfred’s Cakes, when dried out, can be lit with a fire strike and used as a base for a roaring camp fire…” On a limb of rotting ash we found a group of ‘Cramp Balls’ or ‘King Alfred’s Cakes,’ a small black fungi, which has an extraordinary bushcraft use. The black spores on the underside of the ‘cramp ball’ form concentric circles and when dried out the mushroom can be lit with a fire strike and will fire up beautifully to form the base of a roaring camp fire. I kept a few of these ‘cakes’ to add to my firelighting kit that I carry in my backpack. On the return leg of the walk back towards the house and grounds we came across the biggest mass of stump puffballs I’ve ever seen. The stump puffball is a lot smaller than the giant white puffball but is still edible. Indeed, it’s given the chef’s hat symbol in my book which meant that I was keen to bag a few for supper. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one in our group with a passion for wild food and under John’s nonchalant gaze we both got out our pocket knives and harvested a few of these lovely

pear-shaped fungi, leaving the majority behind on their beech host to send out their spores. I’d highly recommend the ‘Fungi Foray’ at Tyntesfield to anybody who has an interest in the natural world, the guides were highly knowledgeable and enthusiastic about their chosen field. The group that I was part of on the day wasn’t too large so everybody was able to get close to one of the guides when fungi was found for identification. The onus on identification rather than food for the pot gave me an appreciation of fungi and the part it plays in the greater ecology of the woodland. www.nationaltrust.org.uk/tyntesfield The Tyntesfield Estate is now open all year round

There are lots of other mushroom (and wild food) foraging or identification courses in Sparkland Former chef Andrew Sartain has been leading wild food forages around the West Country for a number of years. Email andrew @wildfoodlarder.com for dates for 2012 Hedgerow Harvest offers a range of foraging and wild food courses, for complete beginners or those with some foraging experience, in Wiltshire and Dorset: www.hedgerow-harvest.com Andy and Dave Hamilton (who wrote this issue’s feature on Mushrooms for Mood) head wild food forages around the country. Dates already announced for 2012 include Bristol and Bradford-on-Avon. www.selfsufficientish.com Fraser Christian at www.wildforage.co.uk runs wild food and fungi walks in Gloucestershire, Devon and Dorset.

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24 food World on your plate A potted history of the humble roast dinner by Dave Hamilton

urely there is nothing more British than a good old roast dinner? It stands as a British cultural icon as much as tacos do for Mexico, curry for India, and Type Two diabetes for the USA. Yet the story of the roast begins far from these shores, down the western strip of South America, off the coast of Chilean Northern Patagonia, in a set of islands know as the Chiloé archipelago. It was here, in a wet, maritime climate, that the most widely eaten cultivar of potato first originated. These islands are home to the most modern form of potato but this versatile vegetable owes its wild origins to the South American mainland. Around 13,000 years ago the plant began to be eaten by humans in the high Andes around Lake Titicaca. Back then it was a spindly, dark, uninspiring root which had to be leached of toxins to make it edible. Yet the ancient Aztecs persevered, spending another 5 or 6,000 years breeding this unexceptional root crop until it became domesticated. Another of the ‘typically English’ foods we take for granted is the carrot. Before humans got hold of the carrot it was nothing more than a spindly purple rooted plant growing far from our shores in the Hindu Kush up on the Himalayan plateau, in what is now Afghanistan and Pakistan. Over time the root was bred to

be fatter and fatter, sweeter and sweeter until it became a palatable food rather than something we humans only turned to in a famine. By the time the Romans introduced it to Europe, the purple colouring had more or less been bred out of the root. However, at this point it still wouldn’t have resembled the orange root vegetable we know today.

Instead the carrot was white, resembling more a parsnip than a viable snack for Bugs Bunny. The story goes that the orange was bred into the

thought for food

carrot to honour William of Orange, a celebrated Dutch King from the 16th Century. Like many a good story, though, this isn’t actually true and it’s more likely that the orange colour was the results of Dutch horticulturalists breeding a sweeter kind of carrot. By now the carnivores amongst you might be asking, “What about the meat?” Well, let’s consider the chicken. This creature owes its origins to a forest-dwelling bird in Northern India, the Red Jungle Fowl. This pheasant-like bird, domesticated as far back as 6,000BC in China, may have been used mainly for cock fighting rather than food. It soon spread across Southern Asia where, in multiple locations, it was bred with the Grey Jungle Fowl, another bird more at home in the tree line of Northern India, to become the modern chicken we know today. So does any of the traditionally British roast came from these shores? Well, Brussels’ sprouts were first cultivated in Brussels (surprise, surprise), parsnips in the Mediterranean, peas in western Asia and the eastern Mediterranean, and the cabbage in south-western Europe. Even roast beef is not British, as the cow owes its origins to an ancient beast known as the Auroch, an animal more at home in North Africa and Asia than in North Somerset or Devon. So what of all that goes to make a good old British Roast is actually British? Well, the Yorkshire Pudding is definitely native. Gravy is also a contender, although it takes its name from the old French word grané!

Bristol’s award-winning Vegetarian restaurant Café Maitreya has changed hands. Now trading as Maitreya Social, former owner and head chef Mark Evans has moved on to pastures new and Barney McGrath (formerly chef at the St Werburghs City Farm Café) has taken over. Barney’s keen for Maitreya Social to maintain its place at the forefront of vegetarian eateries, and he’s reintroduced daytime opening too, with great tasting, affordable veggie breakfasts (available from 10am) and lunches. He’s also making more use of the restaurant’s upstairs room: what has always been one of The Spark’s favourite restaurants will from now on showcase some of the city’s thriving artistic talent through live music, performances and exhibitions of local art. Maitreya Social, 89 St Mark’s Rd, Easton, Bristol BS5 6HY. Tel: 0117 951 0100, www.maitreyasocial.co.uk (closed Mondays)

The Essential crew some time in the 1980s!

Spark67.ab27.indd 24

by Darryl Bullock

Wiltshire local food network

If you thought sugar was bad, wait ’til you meet fructose says Annemieke Wigmore ot many people know that it’s sugar, not fat, that makes us fat. And it’s often sugar that makes us ill. Sugar is a big no-no if we want to stay healthy. Most of us have heard this, even if we don’t always apply this wisdom to our eating habits. However, sugar is positively holy compared to what they use to sweeten us up with these days: glucose-fructose syrup. Glucose-fructose syrup consists largely of fructose. This sounds healthy: after all, fructose is found in fruit. However, in its natural state, fructose is part of a whole food which includes enzymes, fibre, vitamins and minerals. Glucosefructose syrup, on the other hand, contains much more fructose than you could ever find in fruit, and in a totally different context. It does not have fibre, which slows digestion and feeds beneficial bacteria in your digestive tract. So instead, it feeds only the baddies. If you and your stomach are young and strong, you can cope with that for a while. If not, the result is indigestion. There are many more reasons to avoid this sugar-substitute. Fructose leaves us unsatisfied and always wanting more. And here you were blaming your lack of willpower! It can damage our metabolism; it causes dangerous fat cell growths around vital organs; it may trigger diabetes, in children especially, and heart disease.* So why is it so ubiquitous these days? It’s cheap, far cheaper than real sugar, which itself is cheaper than many other ingredients. It’s easy to transport. It has a long shelf life. It keeps foods moist. It gives bread a wonderful colour

•••news•••

and chocolate a shine. In America it’s highly subsidized. Which is why fructose is increasingly found, even in cornflakes, all-bran, pizzas and soups. ‘Healthy’ – meaning low-fat – alternatives, are often anything but. We need fat in our bodies. If food lacks fat (indispensable cells to function in our body). And they’re not healthy because this fat has usually been replaced by sugar at best, by fructose at worst. * See www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/ article6954603.ece http://thoughtforfood-aw.blogspot.com

iltshire Wildlife Trust is launching an innovative and exciting new project in January 2012: Food Champions. Part of Wiltshire and Swindon’s first Local Food Network, the three-year Food Champions scheme is being set up to help disadvantaged communities to learn about, and have access to, healthy local food. Participants in the programme will be taught horticultural skills, new allotments and orchards will be created and a network of voluntary Food Champions will be recruited across the region. The new Local Food Network hopes to bring together the many people in Swindon and Wiltshire already taking steps to tackle local food issues. Wiltshire and Swindon’s first Local Food Network launches officially with events at Lower Moor Farm Nature Reserve (on January 19) and at Langford Lakes Nature Reserve, near Salisbury on January 20. To get involved contact Gary Lamont, Project Leader on 01380 736080 or email GaryL@wiltshirewildlife.org

Bristol-based wholefood producer and wholesaler Essential Trading is celebrating their 40th birthday with a year of themed activities and promotions, culminating in a celebration in September 2012. “Essential supplied organic and fairtrade food long before it was trendy to do so,” says marketing manager Eli Sarre. “Back in the 1970s health food stores were a novelty, and the foods they stocked relatively limited, but now, the shift towards organic and ethical foods, as well as free-from diets, and vegetarianism and veganism, means we have a strong and thriving industry.” Despite the supermarkets muscling in on the wholefood trade, Essential will still only supply independent businesses (including their own Harvest shops; where the Essential story began in Bath in 1971) and adheres to a strong code of ethics that runs through the whole business, from employees to suppliers. Essential actively supports organic and fairly traded goods and continues to call for GM crops to be banned. The company currently carries over 6,000 wholesale products including over 100 of its own Essential branded goods. You can even order a bundle of The Spark from them, to arrive with your next delivery! www.essential-trading.coop

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26 family

autism support in Sparkland Hannah Latham discovers a trail-blazing treatment centre in Bridgwater that’s been giving parents of autistic children support for 30 years of a drop in funding a fee of £945 is charged towards the £3,000 cost. Jess stresses that they don’t like to turn anyone away and can help with fundraising where needed. Maddie and Finlay did a drawing, for example, which sold at a fundraising auction recently. The money raised will enable them to go back to the centre for more support. People come from across the UK to Bibic and they have had enquiries from abroad. They treat around 400 families annually. The charity was set up in 1972 by a man called Keith Pennock whose daughter suffered a brain injury. He couldn’t find any support in the UK but heard there were some radical techniques being researched in the US. He went over there and picked up everything he could and came back and implemented it over here. Bibic therapists are now trained on the job and though there are no official qualifications given, Bibic are looking at setting up a degree course in the long-term.

extra support

Former clients of Bibic attend a workshop in Bridgwater

amilies with children who have brain conditions are accessing support from a charity in the South West with lifechanging results. Bibic, based near Bridgwater, works with children with autism, cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome, developmental delay, attention deficits hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia and dyspraxia, using techniques pioneered in the US 30 years ago. Bibic run a five-day annual programme which starts with a weekend residential where families explore their issues and are given a programme of exercises and strategies to take home. They try this out for four months then come back and discuss what worked and what didn’t, and the therapists modify it. “For a lot of the parents it’s the first time someone has listened to them,” says Bibic’s fundraising and communications manager Jess Winchester. “We help them to understand why their children behave in a certain way. The straw that breaks the camel’s back is the challenging behaviour.”

invisible disability

It can often be hard to separate the behaviour related to a child’s condition from normal childhood behaviour. This is especially true of Aspergers syndrome – a form of autism – that is thought to affect between 0.36 and 0.71% of the population. A developmental disability, it is more common in boys and is often referred to as an ‘invisible’ disability because it can go undetected. People with Autism tend to have higher than average intellectual intelligence and lower than average emotional and social capacities. Aspergers brains need structure and instruction, and with it, they thrive. If children with Aspergers don’t get this structure they find everyday life extremely difficult and can start to act out. Carla Dabinett has two children diagnosed with Aspergers: Finlay, 11 and Maddie, 7 (the condition is thought to be genetic). Despite the diagnosis and two thick files of reports from Bibic, Carla has found the support from the children’s school to be lacking. “Maddie is very quiet and introverted,” says Carla. “Her performance is poor but they don’t think there’s a problem because she isn’t making a fuss or a scene.” While boys can act out more vocally or physically it’s common for girls to quietly go into themselves. However Maddie would behave very differently once she was home, “crawling up the walls” says her mum. The teachers simply did not believe that this quiet child would behave so differently at home. A Bibic therapist said it was like shaking a can of coke all day, then

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opening it when she got home. Maddie has also been diagnosed with acute anxiety, which is commonly associated with an Aspergers diagnosis. “She kept saying ‘I’m shy, I’m shy’, about school,” says Carla. “Then one day she said “Mummy, shy means scared’.” Another common trait with people with Aspergers is having heightened senses. Where other people might block many sounds out, for example, those with Aspergers hear everything at once. So a crowded room, for example, can be overwhelming. It’s the same with touch or taste. Maddie stopped

“For a lot of parents, it’s the first time someone has listened to them… the straw that breaks the camel’s back is the challenging behaviour” eating everything except tomato soup for three months because after coughing on a sweet she was convinced she’d choke. Carla was beside herself and Maddie was eventually hospitalised. The paediatrician told Carla she needed to get used to these phases that Maddie would go through, and recommended a book. The book was helpful but Carla needed far more support than this. “Bibic is the best thing we’ve ever done,” says Carla. “They’re the only people who have understood us and have listened to the kids. They did a sensory programme with Maddie to desensitise her: whispering to help improve her ability to concentrate and increase awareness of certain sounds, applying a hot wet flannel to one side of her face in a certain movement, using a massager on certain parts of the body at others. It really worked.”

holistic approach

Bibic’s treatment is unique in the UK in a few respects. They accept families who have not had a formal diagnosis, and they can also treat children with multiple issues, whereas the NHS treats each condition individually. They have also devised their own strategy for managing behavioural issues. Bibic have funding for outreach workers across the South West and offer to help families communicate with schools. They’ll also help with young adults, pointing families in the right direction for ongoing support. Families find Bibic through word of mouth. The treatment used to be free but because

With conditions such as Aspergers the government-funded support system is varied. Not everyone has a negative experience such as Carla’s. There are other places you can go for information and advice (listed at the end). For those who don’t get the support they need elsewhere, Bibic are filling the gap. “Families come and they’re stressed and upset with the way things are,” says Jess Winchester. “You see them leave and there’s a physical difference: they’re relaxed and smiling and that’s only after day one. We help children lead normal, rewarding, happy childhoods.” www.bibic.org.uk 01278 684060. www.aspergerfoundation.org.uk www.autism.org.uk national charity with support programmes in Bath, Bristol, Weston-Super-Mare, Trowbridge and the South West. Jo Stevens, 01226 779218, www.autism.org.uk/earlybirdplus www.asperger-syndrome.me.uk Information site set up by parents with a son who has Aspergers. www.supportiveparents.org.uk Offers support for parents of children with special educational needs. Serves N Somerset, Bristol and S.Glos. Brandon Trust, www.brandontrust.org 0117 907 7200.

the singing tree

Some new singing classes for children under five have started in Bristol and Corsham. They help prepare kids for learning an instrument and reading music as they get older. Using fun rhymes and games with song, The Singing Tree introduces rhythm, tempo, tone and dynamics. I took my son who is just over one year old and loves music. Despite not being able to sing along yet he was captivated. We played a clever game with a toy bird and a black ribbon: two children hold either end of the ribbon while the teacher holds the bird in the air above, on and below the ribbon. We all sing various notes going down the scale as she does this, introducing the visual concept of lines and musical scales. The Singing Tree uses the Kodály approach to music teaching. Kodály was a Hungarian composer and educationalist who pioneered a philosophy in the 1930s to teach music through playful games and songs. He taught pitch through a musical sign language called solfa (using doh-re-mi…) and rhythm through movement and games. Colourstrings is an offshoot from one of his scholars, used around the world today. These classes are the first of their kind in Sparkland. www.thesingingtree.co.uk £5, Mollie (Bristol) 07905 786447, Tara (Corsham) 07747 745675.

walk with kids

juvenile arthritis A new range of free literature is now available from the charity Arthritis Care, aimed at parents of the 12,000 children in the UK with the condition. The literature – the only kind currently available – aims to address the emotional and practical support needs of parents of children with juvenile arthritis. Kate Llewelyn of Arthritis Care says: “Juvenile arthritis is a painful condition. It can be very isolating and have a huge impact on family life. This new booklet seeks to reassure parents by giving them the facts to help them manage their lives in a more confident way.” The main booklet, titled ‘My Child has Arthritis – a Practical Guide for Parents’, gives many tips from parents who have gone through the same experience. www.arthritiscare.org.uk Printed versions can be obtained by emailing thesource@arthritiscare.org.uk or by a free call to 0808 808 2000

The new ‘National Trust One’ campaign is offering ideas for 101 short walks across the South West (all one mile in length) which can now be downloaded online. Ideal for children, these short walks take in a variety of landscapes and sights, from beaches and moorlands to rolling hills, historic buildings, picturesque villages and grand stately homes. The walks are graded into four categories: Flip-flops (for the non-serious, laidback walker); Trainers (for those who like a little comfort); Wellies (for those who don’t mind a bit of mud); and Walking boots (off the beaten track). Local experts have given their input on the flora and fauna, history, geography and geology. http://bit.ly/qPZ3Qz

18/11/11 15:16:55

Upledger Therapy More than CranioSacral Therapy Upledger CranioSacral Therapy training is post graduate, designed for those already qualified in some aspect of healthcare, typically with experience in bodywork. The core training is 5 modules, developed over the last 25 years by Dr John Upledger and the Upledger Institute. The first two, CST1 & 2 explore techniques to evaluate and treat the craniosacral system - membranes and fluid surronding the brain and spinal cord - from the bones to which they attach, thus having a profound effect on the nervous system.

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The next two, SomatoEmotional Release (SER)1 & 2, help us assist clients to release emotional components of physically held trauma. This unique aspect of Dr Upledger’s approach draws on the limbic system’s natural tendency for imagery and other psychotherapeutic approaches while using the craniosacral rhythm and changes in tissue quality to keep ‘on track’, in a very client centred approach. The Advanced resedential draws all the work together and you truly learn from experience.

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28 mind, mind body body&&spirit spirit

herbal highs and lows

Darryl Bullock asks independent herbalists how the new Herbal Directive has affected their practice – and their customers’ choices – since it became law

n May 2011, a new law came onto the UK statute books relating to the regulation of herbal medicine. The Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive (THMPD) governs every herbal medicinal product sold in the EU. Previously individual EU member states regulated themselves, leading to different products, or similar products but in different doses, being available in different countries. Under the THMPD a company needs to demonstrate that the herbal medicine in question has been in use within the EU for at least 30 years (or 15 years within the EU and 30 years elsewhere) otherwise they must buy a licence to sell that particular product over the counter in the future. The intention was to prevent fraudulent selling of herbal medicines from unqualified charlatans but unfortunately THMPD makes life more difficult for genuine practitioners. The huge cost of the new licences (potentially up to £50,000) are prohibitive to smaller, independent traders and the worry is that control of herbal medicines will fall into the hands of big pharmaceuticals who can afford the licences. The Government has already approved plans for the Health Professionals Council to establish a register of practitioners supplying unlicensed herbal medicines, and practitioners will be required by law to sign. An unspecified period of grace currently in operation means that herbalists can continue to sell off ‘old’ stock, but any ‘new’ medicine will now need a licence. The MHRA (the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency) have declared their intention to implement the Directive sensitively, however, enabling

systems such as Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda to continue. Chinese herbalist Tony Harrison, of the Natural Health Clinic, is resigned to the fact. “We don’t want regulation but without it we will lose our herbs,” he says. “We’re already having problems getting hold of certain herbs; being regulated might improve that.”

by appointment

The only herbal medicines exempt from the THMPD are unlicensed remedies made up for individual patients, following a consultation with a herbalist. Max Drake, independent herbalist at Bristol’s Urban Fringe Dispensary, says: “I can prepare medicines made up for individual use but there are quite a few medicines we make that we are no longer able to sell online because we can’t sell them without a face-to-face consultation. The possibility of a herbalist or anyone with any skill blending herbs together to make a

product and then branding it and selling it has gone. You can’t do that unless you have the requisite £50,000 or so for a licence.” Shops which sell individual herbs for food use will still be able to sell them to their customers but, as Max says, “Some wholefood shops will lose out, because herbs like valerian (a medicinal herb) will end up being regulated.” “Only regulated herbalists will be able to prescribe,” Max says. “In principle you could say that this is a good thing; it has been put together in the name of patient safety. But it’s passing control of all herbs and all herbal medicines to the big pharmaceutical companies. There seems to be a concerted effort by the industry to influence opinion against herbal medicine.” Becs Griffiths, of the Rhizome Community Herbal Clinic, agrees: “It’s defaming herbal medicine. They’re making people feel as if they need to be protected from all of these ‘dangerous plants’!”

happy shoppers

(L-R) Kathryn John, Lucy Barfoot & Lucy Duggan

omething special is going on in a shopping centre in Bristol. Take an escalator to the first floor of The Galleries and you’ll find Lightbox: The Happiness Project, which offers free creative workshops to promote positive thinking and resilience. Lucy Duggan and Lucy Barfoot, both artists and brought together by a love of To-Do lists, initiated the whole thing. “We’re both determinedly happy people,”’ Lucy D told me. “And we’d both seen for ourselves how having gratitude and achieving goals can contribute to happiness. Then we discovered that this has been studied by psychologists and there is evidence to back it up.” “As humans every one of us is creative,” Lucy said “but for many there are few outlets and little time. Creative energy is stagnating in a lot of people: it should be flowing but it’s stuck.” Lightbox’s free two-hour workshops are open to anybody and use themes to unlock participants’ creativity, thus improving feelings of well-being. They’re also about confidence-building; finding the power to change and tackling isolation; and ‘the key is being around other happy people – it’s a universal goal – everyone wants to be happy

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Lightbox, first floor of The Galleries (opposite Boots, next to WH Smiths), Bristol. www.wearelightbox.co.uk

age old healing

Becs agrees: “It’s not affecting me on a dayto-day basis, although it does mean that I can’t buy prepared tablets. But it affects me in a much broader context: as a professional herbalist the first thing for me to do is to teach people how to treat themselves. Not being able to buy herbal medicines from a health shop is going to severely limit that. But Herbal Medicine will survive: people will find ways of using plant medicine, just like they have done for thousands of years.” The Natural Health Clinic, 39 Cotham Hill, Bristol tel 0117 974 1199 www.thenaturalhealthclinic.com, The Rhizome Community Herbal Clinic, St Werburghs Community Centre, Horley Rd, Bristol tel 0741 239 9154 www.rhizomeclinic.org.uk Urban Fringe Dispensary, 58 Colston St, Bristol tel 0117 927 6527 www.urbanfringe.org,

news

Beccy Golding on free creative workshops and strong.” Every workshop begins with a group discussion followed by a creative activity. At the end there are recommendations to take back into everyday life. For example the Gratitude workshop uses book-binding and decorating to create a journal to take away. You write down things for which you are grateful every day for two weeks; acknowledging and recognising the good things in your life. Then fortnightly catch-ups enable people to explore the impact this has on mood and outlook. Other themes include Humour & Playfulness (dismantling and reconstructing toys), Vitality (papier mache piñatas), Nurture and Kindness (mosaic-making and seed-planting). There are also new 10-week courses staring in January 2012 specifically for young people with mental health issues or women at risk of offending. The project has a strong team of volunteers; in fact the third member of staff, Kathryn John, was originally one herself. They assist with drop-ins, help with workshops and form a participant steering group. However none of the three staff are actually paid; they are all working other jobs and doing Lightbox in their ‘spare’ time. Right now they’re fund-raising for salaries so they can give it the dedicated time it deserves. “We’re running on this great tide of enthusiasm, but it needs to become sustainable,” said Lucy. The Lightbox model: creative well-being opportunities right in the High Street – free and easily accessible to everyone – is one that deserves to be replicated across Sparkland and beyond, so go visit them (book beforehand to be sure of a place), unleash your creativity, become a volunteer or even make a donation!

As Max says: “The important point, and the one that most people are missing, is the difference between Herbal Medicine and herbal medicines. Herbal Medicine is a holistic health practice and an alternative view of healthcare to the conventional one. What the legislation is attempting to do is to stamp that out completely, and say that there is only one form of health care: evidence-based, allopathic medicine. It takes healthcare, and healthcare choice, away from individuals: we will all become passive bystanders in our own healthcare. Our customers are quite angry about this; they see it as symptomatic of what’s going on in society at large. We’re being straitjacketed: power is being devolved into fewer and fewer hands.”

Pagan winter

talked to Mark from Bristol Open Circle Moot about how Pagans celebrate through the winter months. “The winter Solstice (Midwinter/ Yule) is important,” says Mark. “The Sun/light is reborn within the dark womb of winter. It’s a time of letting go of the old and welcoming in the new: a time to reflect, relax and celebrate with family and friends.” The winter Solstice is a time of rebirth, and traditionally evergreens were brought into the house to represent everlasting life. To celebrate at home, Mark suggests creating a Solstice altar with family and friends. “Decorate your house with evergreens and greenery. Light candles and, if possible, have a bonfire. Spend the evening with family and friends, sipping hot, spicy drinks. Give eco-friendly gifts, plants or products made from recycled materials.” The traditional Wassail on 12th night is another lovely way to celebrate in community. “We awake the cider apple trees with singing and drinking to their health, and scare away evil spirits to ensure a good harvest,” says Mark. “Imbolc, celebrated on February 1-2, is also important. The Earth energy is awakening as we see the natural world coming into life again…” Bristol Open Circle Moot meets every Tuesday, 8.30pm, King William pub, King Street, Bristol www.bristolopencirclemoot.org.uk For other Moots (Pagan meetings) in Sparkland visit http://pfwessex.org/moots.php

Wellspring Healthy Living Centre in Barton Hill, Bristol, offers low cost therapies to those on low incomes Mon-Fri. This is funded by full-price therapies given at the Wellspring ‘Oasis’ clinic on Sat/Sun. Get a weekend treatment there and double your feeling of well-being! Wellspring are also looking for therapists to join their team. www.wellspringhlc.org/oasis

The College of Naturopathic Medicine (CNM) will be putting up the cost of their diploma training courses in 2012. Enrol and pay before January to avoid the increase. www.naturopathy-uk.com

Arcania in Bath has recently moved: you can now find this treasure trove right behind Bath Abbey, at 6-7 Orange Grove BA1 1LP. Set up as an esoteric bookshop in 1985, Arcania offers natural beauty products, jewellery, textiles, books & CDs and is a herbal apothecary. They also offer massage, holistic treatments and online shopping. www.arcaniabath.com

The Institute for Optimum Nutrition (ION) is now offering its courses in Bristol – there’s an Open Day on Saturday February 4. www.ion.ac.uk

The Wells-based Nutritional Healing Foundation is also now offering its courses in Bristol. Run by Frances Hopcraft, the Certificate in Nutritional Healing 8-week course begins Thursday January 12. http://nutritionroots.org.uk

18/11/11 15:16:58

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index acu - arch

want to advertise in advertising? The Spark?more see inside info on back inside cover back forcover info

Welcome to The Spark Listings – issue 67 * When you reply to an ad please say you saw it in The Spark – it’s the advertisers who pay for The Spark and it’s great for them to know their ads are working (and it really helps us). Thanks. Find lovely people offering you a plethora of services and opportunities, from courses to counselling, massage, personal development, spirituality and yoga ... plus food suppliers, eco-builders, holiday providers and more. Making the global personal.. the personal global.. we think you can’t separate the person from the world they live in. Disability access codes are included in the

ads if the advertiser has given them to us:

A Level entrance to building B Room with level access C Adapted toilets S(X) Steps and no. of steps NA Not accessible H Home visits available T Telephone for further info

acupuncture

Listings sections this issue: acupuncture addictions alexander technique architects, buildings & home aromatherapy arts therapies astrology bowen technique breath therapy business services career development centres & venues ceremonies & celebrations city farms coaching colour therapy complementary clinics complementary practitioners computers & web design

constellations cooperatives counselling & psychotherapy: • bath • bristol • bristol north • bristol south • families/young people • groups/group therapy • psychotherapy • relationships • somerset • stroud • general c&p training courses - green courses, groups & workshops craniosacral therapy dance death & dying dentists & dental care design, writers & print drama, performance & ﬁlm feng shui food garden gay, lesbian & bisexual

green energy healing health & beauty health shops herbal medicine holidays: • activity • holiday cottages • health • holistic home & decluttering homeopathy hypnotherapy kinesiology lightning process martial arts massage & bodywork meditation money movement & bodywork music & sound naturopathy nlp *new* nutrition & diet

osteopathy personal growth courses personal growth practitioners readings rebirthing reﬂexology reiki relaxing & winding down rolﬁng rooms & spaces sex & sexuality shamanism shiatsu spiritual paths & practices tai chi training voice volunteering women yoga

Small Print. It’s very rare, but once in a while an advertiser behaves in a way they shouldn’t. If you’re had an experience with one of our advertisers that made you feel uneasy, uncomfortable, cross or bamboozled, please let us know as soon as possible. We’ll do our best to make the situation better – this could be through

gentle persuasion, direct challenge, or in some cases by refusing to accept their custom. Having said that, the small print below still stands.. Blue Sax Publishing Ltd, who publish The Spark, cannot take any responsibility for the quality of an advertisers’ service or advertisers’ conduct. In choosing an advertiser you may wish to consult the

appropriate professional bodies. We gather the info but we can’t and don’t evaluate the advertisers. Advertisers are advised that all copy is their sole responsibility under The Trade Protection Act. All adverts must comply with the British Code of Advertising Practice. We reserve the right to refuse, amend, withdraw or otherwise deal with

advertisements submitted to us at our absolute discretion and without explanation. Blue Sax Publishing can accept no liability for any loss or damage resulting from omission or inaccuracies relating to telephone numbers, wording, spacing or positioning or other material regardless how caused.

Alcohol, Substance, Internet Counselling Concerned about yours or another’s behaviour? Confidential, qualified addiction counsellor with over 10 years experience offering practical support/ advice. Sarah 0785 475 2749 bristoladdictionconsultancy@gmail.com

architects, building & home

alexander technique Safe, effective & drug free treatments. • Nausea • PIH • Breech & Posterior Turning • Post Natal Care • Miscarriage Care • Miscarriage Reduction • Menstrual & Menopausal Complaints • Fertility, Natural, Assisted & IVF (male/female) • and more. Birth preparation treatments studied & seen to reduce labour time, reduce intervention needed & encourage spontaneous delivery around your due date. • Active Birth Sessions. Make informed & empowered choices for the birth of your baby. Groups, Couples & Individuals • Doula-Birth Companionship; Encouraging a satisfying experience, Pre & Post Natal • Savings & Concessions Available. Please see website or ring for details. 0117 924 9774 / 07966 249 201 barefootdoula@hotmail.co.uk Bristol www.tothepointacupuncture.co.uk

Isabel James Lic.Ac, MBAcC, MRCHM

• Traditional Chinese Acupuncture • Chinese Herbal Medicine • Experienced children’s practitioner • Gentle effective treatment. Fully qualified practitioner with 10 years’ experience in successfully treating a wide range of conditions, both physical and mental/emotional. Bishopston, Bristol. Tel: 0117 924 1188

addictions

Stiff neck? Rounded Shoulders? Backache? Are you stressed out, fed up with over-reacting or just feeling stuck? Would you like to learn how to get rid of muscular aches and pains and be calmer and more reasonable? How about sitting more comfortably at your desk or improving your performance in sport or leisure activities? If so the Alexander Technique may be just what you are looking for. Come and find out at a free introductory lesson. I offer individual/group classes in Southville and at Neal’s Yard Therapy Rooms in Clifton. I can also come to workplaces to run introductory workshops/classes. 0117 966 4797 / 07791 785 850 veronica@right-thing.co.uk www.veronicapollard.co.uk

Alexander Technique on Greek Island of Alonnisos Freedom and awareness mid crystal-clear seas, olives, pines, wild herbs, boat trips, snorkelling. 0207 253 2022 alexpen@onetel.com www.alexanderingreece.com

Bristol Alexander School www.battsa.co.uk

Knowing someone you care about is using drugs and alcohol to cope can be devastating to loved ones. Concerned others often display psychological and physical stress symptoms such as anxiety, depression, insomnia, poor concentration, anger, teeth clenching, back pain, stomach cramps and many more. These symptoms often impact other family members and give rise to a general feeling of powerlessness for all concerned. If you or someone you know is in crisis and affected by someone’s drug and alcohol misuse, whether it’s your partner, good friend, sibling, parent or child you are worried about, we can provide a range of support for you. KWADS 0117 953 3870 info@kwads.org.uk www.kwads.org.uk

STAT registered We offer a 3-year teacher training to learn about yourself and the principles which enhance your co-ordination of body and mind. 3rd year trainees give supervised lessons for £8. Caroline Chalk 01761 439904 caroline@battsa.co.uk www.battsa.co.uk

We are passionate about altering buildings - creating better spaces with existing resources. We are widely experienced in the refurbishment and structural alteration of a variety of buildings. Also, more topically, eco-upgrades - this involves measuring and improving the thermal performance of a building. A full energy survey can be carried out, with impartial design advice to help the building evolve in such times of change, when we must manage our resources more respectfully. We have worked with architects & surveyors, creating lovely projects; references available. We are a close team of 10 PAYE multi-skilled staff focussing on good quality whilst being competitive. Find us on The Green Register. Contact Simon Reid (CIOB): Bristol 9246024 info@beam.uk.com

Transforming spaces... ISS is a building company specialising in affordable alterations and extensions including some new build. Together with our recommended builders, ISS oversees your design, construction and paperwork... while the builders get on with the job. ISS provides you with an experienced designer and personal manager as well as guaranteeing the job. Advice and Design: ISS will talk through any project with you - determining costs or feasibility and identifying the best solution; from re-designing plans to solving problems and offering technical advice on an hourly basis. ISS: 0117 914 3311 or 07785 933 993 E: henry@iss-bristol.co.uk www.iss-bristol.co.uk

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The practice, formed in 1984, has specialised in community buildings, doctors’ surgeries, private houses, and many small-scale extensions and alterations. No job is considered too small and all designs are unique and specific to their client and situation. Special consideration is given to sunlight, view, ecological materials, context, inclusive access, to produce quality solutions that the users will cherish. Vic Love Architects Ltd operates a sliding-fee scale and offers a service to suit, from initial ideas to the full service including designs, drawings for regulations, building contract management and site inspections. Nearly all the commissions have come from referrals from satisfied clients, reflecting the close working relationship and service provided as well as the character, design and quality of the completed buildings. Vic Love Architects Ltd has completed over 1000 projects throughout Bristol and the immediate area. If you have any architectural projects in mind of whatever size, we welcome you to ring us or pop in to the shop for an informal chat. “Vic Love Architects Ltd” 188 Bedminster Down Road, Bristol BS13 7AF Tel: 0117 963 3007 Fax: 0117 963 3007 e-mail: viclove@viclove.co.uk ABH

Chimney Sweep - Avon Area

Friendly, professional, NACS trained. Paul: 0777 256 1009 www.chimneymate.co.uk

Eco-Decorators, Organic Gardeners “Inside Out”

• Quality decorating with attention to detail. Non-toxic paint specialists • Garden maintenance / design. Pruning, weeding, strimming, hedge laying, fencing. Free estimates. Established 2000. 0779 272 8012 / 01761 452495

Licensed to Drill - WBSR

Garden landscaping & maintenance, fencing, decking, patios, ponds. Floor sanding, internal and external decoration, loft insulation, bathrooms & kitchens. Hen houses and chicken runs, log stores and sheds etc. Competitive rates, free quotes and good work generally wonderful. Steve Rose 0117 964 6670 or 0776 324 0158 www.licensedtodrill.net

adorrates visit on www.thespark.co.uk inside back cover for more info or to book online index aro - comp

aromatherapy

LifeChanges

breath therapy

Are you facing retirement or reduced hours? Deborah Clarke, Chartered Psychologist, is running coaching sessions/weekend workshops exploring ways of managing this fundamental change. 0117 946 6988 www.lifechanges.edrivehosting.com

Debbie Latchem. Aromatherapy & Pregnancy Massage/Facials

ITEC, MTI, APNT, IPTI My practice is in Kingswood, Bristol, for female clients. I offer relaxing treatments in ambient surroundings with flexible appointment times. Gift vouchers are available and I sell my own range of natural aromatherapy products. Please contact me for further details. 07710 442814 dlatchem@o2.co.uk www.debs-aromatherapy.co.uk

arts therapies Susan Lawrence Dramatherapy

Dramatherapy for individuals & groups Using play, movement, voice and storytelling dramatherapy can help you to: • develop your creativity • discover other aspects of yourself • develop your confidence and self expression • heal hurts. Please phone / email for more information or to discuss your individual needs. 0117 933 2607 susan_lawrence_evaluation@yahoo.co.uk www.susanlawrencetrainng.co.uk

Transformative Therapy with Art & Music

Correspondence Diploma. Facilitate healing through creative artwork using visualisations and sound from a psycho-spiritual viewpoint. Holistic Design Institute www.holisticdesign.co.uk

astrology Amanda Jarrold Horoscope Analysis Understand your world through Astrology. amanda@circlesandcycles.co.uk 0117 953 9231 / 0779 155 4647

Patricia Lapins

Astrology and Tarot Readings I offer individual sessions in which I analyse your horoscope, and with the aid of Tarot cards and studying the movements of the planets, I am able to shed light on the problems and challenges you are meeting in life, and see into the future. Please ring Patricia tel: 0117 924 0129

Rebirthing breathwork is an amazing tool for cleaning and re-energising our body. Physical, emotional, and psychological healing is enhanced by infusing the body with breath/prana/ chi/life-force. A deep inner purification takes place to restore balance to mind, body and spirit. It allows you to be more fully present in your body, creating higher levels of conscious awareness, increased health and vitality and an overall sense of well-being. Suzanna Viney offers individual breathwork sessions at the Healing Waters Sanctuary in Glastonbury. 2 hour session costs £70. “Words cannot express how profound and deeply healing my sessions with Suzanna have been.” Anya, Somerset www.thebreathknows.com 07968 017740

business services Helen Bardle, Chartered Accountant

I know from personal experience how many demands are placed on any business owner. I aim to make life easier by offering a professional service including management and year-end accounts, budgets and forecasts, tax returns, payroll and VAT. Contact me on 01934 744333 or helen@helenbardle.co.uk to arrange a free initial discussion.

career development Public Speaking Fears?

My passion is about helping people find their voice and find their ease in front of groups. It can be done! Take a look at my page ad in Courses, Groups & Workshops, or go straight to www.speaking-infront.co.uk John Dawson 01225 425300

centres & venues

Vedic/Western Astrologer

Skype/Telephone Readings, £10/£30. Visit www.dominicmitchell.co.uk

bowen technique

A versatile venue for Frome. The Cheese & Grain is available for hire for local residents and clubs, and for all registered charities at reduced rates. Corporate, educational and charity meetings can be booked by negotiation, with access to all venue facilities including screen projection and catering. Contact Martin Dimery at martin@cheeseandgrain.co.uk Cheese & Grain, Market Yard, Frome Tel: 01373 455 768

Abigail Pearce Cert ECBS

Bowen Therapist @ Carpe Diem Therapy Centre, Staple Hill, Bristol. ABHT 0117 965 2966

Christian Dunham ECBS

Australian Bowen Therapist based in Bath Telephone: 07910 332393 www.christiandunham.net

Deadlines for the next Spark (Spring, issue 68)

early bird 15 december final deadline 19 january new spark out 27 february

Learn, Relax and Play in a magical setting near Dorset’s Jurassic Coast. Monkton Wyld Court offers popular residential courses like beekeeping and eco-building, specially tailored holidays for family celebrations, B&B and venue bookings. Meals are lovingly prepared using fresh ingredients from our Victorian walled garden and other local organic producers. Monkton Wyld Court is run by an intentional community committed to the promotion of sustainability through cooperative living and learning. www.monktonwyldcourt.org 01297 560342

ceremonies & celebrations Charles Kemp, Interfaith Minister

Authentic, heartwarming ceremonies for all occasions. www.universalceremony.co.uk 01373 462606

Weddings, Baby Blessings and Funerals Creative, individual, meaningful, beautiful ceremonies. Andrea Harris, Interfaith Minister: 01749 870795

city farms

Life Essence Coaching

Fashioning our lives can be exciting, needing creativity and courage. Combining wisdom from the natural world with intuition and imagination allows our own creative essence to flow and transform. I use NLP, Flower Essences, Guided Imagery and ARTbundance™ Coaching to help release old patterning, establish new balance, and bring a fresh way forwards. Sian Pope 01275 399131/ 07748 644888

Personal Life Coach - Qualified, Affordable. Call or text Jay Blackwood: 0785 034 8407 www.bristolcoach.co.uk

Shadow Work Coaching with Marianne Hill Bristol I believe deeply in the transformative power of non-judgemental acceptance. Only then can the parts of ourselves that we most want to hide come forward into the light, knowing it is a safe place to be, and that they may finally be witnessed and transformed. “Marianne brings passion, commitment and an open heart. I was able to transform the issue at the deepest level.” Vicky. Please see my website for further information. www.ShiatsuAndShadowWorkBristol.co.uk 0117 941 1012 hillymanril@hotmail.co.uk

www.walkingtomeetourselves.co.uk

Offering supported time and space outdoors... Call Rosalind 0117 330 9024T

colour therapy There’s a lot of new stuff going on at Windmill Hill City Farm these days.... Come on down for a cuppa in our lovely café and beautiful new picnic area and find out more... Or go to www.windmillhillcityfarm.org.uk/ events to check out all our new regular fun events Or www.windmillhillcityfarm.org.uk/courses to see what fab courses we have on offer... If you ‘like’ us on facebook.com/windmillhillcityfarm and follow us on twitter@windcityfarm you will be kept up to date on all that’s going on

Colour Therapeutics for Interiors

Correspondence Diploma. Train as a specialist Colour Consultant using the therapeutic qualities of colours. New career / extend your skills. Holistic Design Institute www.holisticdesign.co.uk

complementary clinics

coaching

Spiritual Astrology Readings and Workshops

Do you feel that you are here for a higher purpose? Based on 30 years experience providing uplifting and inspiring astrology readings, my workshops explore planetary influences on our life patterns (e.g. relationships, career, health and past life influences), getting closer to understanding that purpose. Christine 07962 013 914, christine@astrology.vpweb.co.uk www.astrology.vpweb.co.uk

Gaunts House, home of the Richard Glyn Charitable Foundation Ltd, is a country mansion set in beautiful Dorset countryside, with an amazing intention. We are here to learn, grow and develop our consciousness, and to provide the environment for you to do the same. Our Community of Profound Learning is a spiritually-based, holistically-minded group of free thinkers committed to exploring and supporting the evolution of consciousness and the awakening of their inner selves. As well as hosting private retreatants, Wwoofers and other volunteers, we are a leading venue for courses and workshops. We offer delicious home-cooked vegetarian food, all in a peaceful, friendly atmosphere. We are presently looking for a Handyman and Admin Assistant. Tel: 01202 841522 www.gauntshouse.com

“Eileen really does deliver.” The innovative Generator Coaching Package uses world-renowned Margerison McCann Profiling and bespoke coaching to bring you new energy and focus. Have you reached a crossroads in your career, life, or business? One-to-one coaching can help you explore and clarify purpose, set achievable plans and encourage you to move forward. Eileen Ball, a highly experienced senior manager and coach, offers structured support to individuals and organisations. “Time to talk and tangible action plans really helped me to move forward.” Get in touch for an informal chat, find out about our special rates or book an appointment: 0117 230 7147, 07906 804429 eileenball@windmill-hill-associates.co.uk www.windmill-hill-associates.co.uk

Certified Colour Life Coaching

Correspondence programme. Suzy Chiazzari’s rainbow journey uses your inner wisdom to solve problems and create new opportunities. New career/ extend your skills. www.iriscolour.co.uk

Creative Coach

Business coaching/support for designers/makers & creatives http://lisamalyon.com 0758 4433422

Life and Career Coaching

with Jan Castle: gain clarity and make difficult decisions with confidence. Established 10 years; free consultation, fully guaranteed and “surprisingly enjoyable”. 0117 944 1618 www.jancastlecoaching.com

Arcania’s New Premises! Arcania has moved to a fantastic new central location right next to Bath Abbey, with additional treatment rooms available for more therapies and space for small groups. We specialise in our own branded Aromatherapy product range, gemstone jewellery, books, CDs and other unique gifts for the Mind, Body and Spirit. The treatments we offer in our Therapy Rooms with our highly qualified therapists include: • Massage (Aromatherapy, Deep Tissue, etc.) • Beauty (Waxing, Facials) • Reiki • Sound Vibrational Therapy (tuning forks, crystal bowls) • Astrology/Palmistry/Card Readings • Past-Life Regression Therapy. More coming very soon! All are welcome, just call the shop for information or to book an appointment. Gift Vouchers available for treatments or goods. Open Monday-Saturday 10.00am-5.45pm & Sunday 11.00am-4.45pm. 6-7 Orange Grove, Bath, BA1 1LP. Tel: 01225 335233 info@arcaniabath.com www.arcaniabath.com more complementary clinics ads over the page

Thanks for reading The Spark we enjoyed making it for you and if you can read this you’ve got great eyesight

comp clinics

Therapy Room at Bristol City Yoga in Stoke’s Croft and Bishopston, Bristol. £10 off your first treatment when you log onto www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/offers BCY Therapy room brings you expert therapists in a beautiful space. We welcome you whether you need to restore your health or simply wish to relax and revitalize. Treatments include Acupuncture, Craniosacral Therapy, Herbalism, Homeopathy, Osteopathy, Sound Therapy, Massage - Acupressure, Aromatherapy, Ayurvedic, Chavutti, Deep Tissue, Holistic, Hot Stone, Natural Facials, Pregnancy, Post-natal, Shiatsu, Sports and Thai. We also offer graduate and post-graduate training in massage and bodywork. www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/therapy-room therapies@bristolcityyoga.co.uk 07582 425237

Acupuncture, Allergy Testing, Aromatherapy, CBT, Colour Light Therapy, Counselling, E.F.T., Health Kinesiology, Herbal Medicine, Homeopathy, Hypnotherapy, Indian Head Massage, Iridology, Massage, McTimoney Chiropractic, N.L.P., NeuroLinguistic Psychotherapy, Reflexology, Reiki, Shiatsu, Sports & Remedial Massage (Holistic / Swedish / Thai), Time Line Therapy. Free ‘Which Treatment?’ Consultation. Excellent natural health treatments given by the same qualified and experienced practitioners that made the clinic such a success from the start. Gift vouchers. Children’s clinic with treatments given at reduced prices. Casual callers welcomed. ABC Tel: 0117 94 44 448

Alexander Technique Julia Norman 0117 927 7005 CBT Lucy Nicholas 07757 814 204, David Wilcox 07766 465 678 Energy Healing James Coombes 07791 496 687, Tara Halliday 07866 495 885 Holistic Massage Kathryn Smith 07906 540 389 Birth and Parenting Dominique Sakoilsky 07969 204763 Psychotherapy and Counselling Bryan Greene 01275 395 215, Matthew Appleton 0117 942 9696, Garth Naude 0770 900 1528, Cheryl Garner 01275 395 214, Susan Gully 07581 325846, Liz Sorapure 0117 944 4380 Reflexology George Rose 0781 044 1470 Craniosacral Therapy 0117 942 8647 - Dominique Sakoilsky, Jenni Meyer, Matthew Appleton. 26 Cairns Road, Westbury Park, BS6 7TY (Entrance in Russell Rd). Tel: 0117 942 8647. S(1) Further info www.cairnsclinic.co.uk

Providing complementary healthcare since 1988. Individual appointments with highly qualified, experienced practitioners. Some evening appointments available. • Acupuncture • Osteopathy • Cranial Osteopathy • Homeopathy • Counselling • Kinesiology • Reflexology • Chinese Herbal Medicine • Holistic Massage • Reiki. We have disabled access to all therapy rooms and provide a peaceful, safe and caring environment in South Bristol. We also run courses and classes including Tai Chi, Yoga, Meditation, Massage and Shiatsu. The Centre houses the Lam Rim Bristol Buddhist Centre, a small bookshop and refreshment area. Beautiful, large hall available for hire: dates available for 2012. For appointments and hall booking enquiries: 12 Victoria Place, Bedminster, Bristol BS3 1BP. 0117 923 1138 www.centreforwholehealth.org info@centreforwholehealth.org SABC

want to advertise in The Spark? see inside back cover for info

Practitioners. • Louise Chapman - Acupuncture 07789 913 873 www.sites.google.com/site/ louisechapmanacupuncture • Lisa Clarke - Alexander Technique 07904 401 421 lisaeclarke@btinternet.com • Jon Muscaty - Osteopathy and Naturopathy 07968 680 851 www.jonmuscaty.co.uk • Heidi Spindler - Therapeutic/Aromatherapy Massage, Reflexology 07966 453 815 hspindler.mail@gmail.com • Zöe Gray - Nutritional Therapist 07719 606 339 www.znutrition.co.uk Hypnotherapists. • Claire Brigg - 07984 305 239 www.clairebrigg.com • Susan Cassidy 07887 565 907 www.solutionsinmind-hypnotherapy.co.uk • Susan Rodrigues 07743 895 513 www.susanrodrigueshypnotherapy.co.uk • Matthew Dyson 07989 576 456 www.dysontherapy.com • Stephanie Burton (nee Hill) 07915 158 089 www.cliftonhypnotherapy.co.uk Hypnotherapy Information and Appointments Line: 0117 973 3260

Located close to the Arches, Enso offers a relaxed and friendly environment to treat a whole range of today’s health problems. With a team of dedicated and experienced practitioners of traditional and conventional therapies, your every need will be catered for in the comfort & informal surroundings of Enso. • Acupuncture Sarah May 07929 252756 • Neil Kingham 07985 916114 • Fletcher Kovich 07939 843969 • Hypnotherapy Kathryn Fletcher 07964 433023 • Michael Hughes 07969 122938 • Shiatsu Julie Decarroux 07845 804015 • Thai Massage Cliff de la Croix 07726 301714. Whether you have a serious on-going health issue or just want to de-stress, simply phone or pop in for information on any of the treatments that we offer. Treatment Rooms available for hire to qualified practitioners, please call for details.

Our qualified practitioners welcome you to the peaceful atmosphere of the Healing Rooms: Acupuncture Sandra Arbelaez 0794 7808484, Eleanor Breen 0783 416 0906, Julie Kelham 0795 037 8250 Aromatherapy Belinda Jeffery 07941 501660, Sarah Mortimer 07851 307062, Geraldine Simms 0795 836 3056 Chinese Herbal (Medicine) Sandra Arbelaez 07947 808484 Counselling Mo Cahill 0117 973 6503, Rosalind De-Silva 0754 181 5085, Jo Reader 0771 324 3547 Holistic Massage Karunavapi 07709 284056, Sandra Arbelaez 0117 378 9426 Hypnotherapy Sarah Mortimer 07851 307062, Stephanie Betschart 0117 908 9478 Indian Head (Massage) Belinda Jeffery 07941 501660, Geraldine Simms 0795 836 3056 Pre/Post Natal Massage, Doula Trish Utaboon 0776 622 4006 Psychotherapy Peter Lowis 07981 798165, Andy Mckeown 07976 436149 Reflexology Belinda Jeffery 07941 501660, Sarah Mortimer 07851 307062, Geraldine Simms 0795 836 3056 Reiki Sandra Arbelaez 0117 378 9426, Geraldine Simms 0795 836 3056 Shiatsu Hannah Currant 07981 992178, Rosie Freeman 0798 027 9452. To discuss which therapy would suit you, purchase a Gift Voucher or for enquiries regarding becoming one of our professional therapy team, contact our Coordinator, Karunavapi 0758 708 9220 or healingroomsbristol@gmail.com The Healing Rooms, 162 Gloucester Road, Bristol BS7 8NT. www.healingroomsbristol.co.uk

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ad orrates visit www.thespark.co.uk on inside back cover for more info or to book online index comp - comp

complementary practitioners

The Inner-Heart - Esoteric Healing Practice Imperial Chambers, Gloucester Road, Avonmouth (next to Avonmouth Train Station) Weekly Meditation Group Every Saturday at 12 midday for one hour. All welcome - Free of charge. You don’t need to have any experience of meditation, just come along - as the gentle breath meditation is simple and easy and everyone can do it. We also offer a range of treatments including esoteric acupuncture, esoteric massage, and esoteric healing, as well as life coaching. These treatments are for anyone seeking to heal the root cause of any condition. We support adults and children of all ages. As of 1st December our clinic days are Fridays and Saturdays - all day. Each treatment is for an hour, and our standard treatment price is £40. Our treatments support many ailments, illnesses and diseases including sleeplessness, anxiety, back, shoulder or neck pain, diabetes, depression, exhaustion, and digestive problems. All modalities are in line with Esoteric Medicine as taught by Serge Benhayon and the School of Universal Medicine.. Your enquiry is most welcome. If we are not open, do call us on 0117 982 4793, or visit our webpage www.theinnerheart.co.uk or email us on contact@theinnerheart.co.uk

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Support your health as the seasons change with a diverse range of complementary therapies. We offer a holistic approach to your health, and guidance in supporting you as an individual. We are newly qualified professional practitioners offering low cost treatments on the following therapies:Herbal Medicine (Follow-ups combined with Massage) - Becs Griffiths Holistic Massage - Mary Shuldham Massage/Reflexology - Janice Jennings Nutritional Therapy - Sarah Kellett All 1 hour sessions are £25 Treatments include full consultations and follow up sessions as required. You will be met with warm and open communication. Every Sunday between 11am-4.30pm. 15% discount on Neal’s Yard products. www.nealsyardremedies.com/therapies 126 Whiteladies Road, BS8 2RP. 0117 946 6035

Herbal Apothecary & Therapy Rooms in central Bristol with an integrated team of experienced practitioners offering:• Herbal Medicine • Acupuncture • Reflexology • Shiatsu • Holistic & Deep Tissue Massage • Craniosacral Therapy • Counselling • Personal Consultancy • Reiki. We’re in a beautiful 16th century building, and have a huge range of herbs and herbal products, many locally grown and produced in our dispensary. We have some spaces available for additional therapists - please call Max or Lisa if interested. 58 Colston Street, Bristol BS1 5AZ Tel: 0117 927 6527 Email: info@urbanfringe.co.uk www.urbanfringe.co.uk

Clearing takes place in a confidential, one-to-one setting where you work in areas of your choosing. The Clearer guides you in a series of communication processes that clear current problems and discharge stacked up communications, helping you find and express your inner truths, bringing insight and clarity to areas of your life that have been held in tension and confusion. Clearing offers the possibility of dissolving deep-seated patterns and fixed attitudes to bring greater satisfaction, emotional freedom and life fulfilment. To find out more about Clearing, or to arrange a free consultation with Anthony, please ring 0795 005 2100 or email anthonymjohnston@gmail.com

The Harbourside Practice

All therapists practising at Neal’s Yard Therapy rooms are fully qualified to a high standard. Therapies available: Acupuncture • Aromatherapy • Shiatsu • Naturopathy • Massage • Homoeopathy • Medical Herbalism • Pre-conception care • Ayurveda • Chinese Herbalism • Kinesiology • Reflexology • Cranio-Sacral Therapy • Ear Candling • Bowen • Holistic Facials • Bach Flower Remedies. Workshops. We run various talks and workshops on natural medicine and healthy living. Appointments can be made by visiting the shop or by telephone. We are happy to help you choose which treatment may be appropriate. In addition most practitioners will give 10 minute free consultations to help you decide. Open Monday to Saturday 9.30-5.45pm and Sundays 11-5pm. Gift vouchers available and are interchangeable between Neal’s Yard Remedies shops. Neal’s Yard Remedies Therapy Rooms, 7 Northumberland Place, Bath BA1 5AR Tel: 01225 466944 e-mail: info@nyrbath.co.uk

Three warm, professional and sensibly-priced therapy and consulting rooms within a landmark Georgian terrace with views over the water towards Queen’s Square and Welsh Back. Excellent parking and transport links (including Temple Meads and the M32) with ready access to the city centre and south Bristol. For more information phone Clive on 07947 023371, go to http://theharboursidepractice.co.uk or e-mail clive@theharboursidepractice.co.uk

Be seen where people are looking for you. That’s what listings is all about

Are you stuck in a maze of confusion? Bewildered by therapies and remedies? Don’t know what advice to believe? The answer is simple! I can unlock what your body already knows it needs to restore or maintain health, with the fine detail of Kinesiology. Help resolve major & minor problems: digestive disorders, food intolerances, fatigue & low energy, allergies, asthma & eczema, migraine & headache, stress-related problems, PMS, menopause, muscle & joint pain, poor immunity to infections, vitamin & mineral imbalances, etc. Diana Sheppard KFRP. Natural Health Caring with Kinesiology. Call 0117 977 6354 for free discussion of your needs. www.dianasheppard.co.uk more complementary practitioners ads over the page

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comp index - couns want to advertise in advertising? The Spark?more see inside info onback inside cover back forcover info

Melissa Jennings - Holistic Therapist

counselling & psychotherapy

Aromatherapy Massage, Indian Head Massage, Reflexology, Energy Healing, Crystal Healing. Fully qualified and insured, close to Cheltenham town centre, affordable rates. 07798 686 089 magic_moppy@yahoo.co.uk

computers & web design

PC problems? Mac misery? Wireless worries? OK, so you’ve tried switching it off then on again, and that hasn’t worked. What now? Simple: if you’re in Bristol, just pick up the phone and Dial a Geek... We’re an IT support emergency call-out service for businesses and home users. We’re fast. We’re friendly. And despite our name, we never baffle our nice customers with confusing Geek-Speak. Our charges are very reasonable, too. And best of all, we’re very, very good at sorting out all kinds of IT issues - whatever kind of computer, whatever the problem, we can take care of it for you. Gildas Jones - Technical Support Engineer. Call us Free on 0800 955 7878 www.dialageek.co.uk support@dialageek.co.uk

New Macs, repairing sick Macs, advice, upgrading your computer, printers, ADSL Broadband - all in one shop. Easy parking & helpful staff with years of experience. Macs have a lot to offer: professional MacPro Tower, powerful MacBookPro, budget iMac MacBook, all with Intel Core2Duo Processors, extremely fast and stable. Virus resistant. Macs are so much easier to use than PCs. We supply doctors & practitioners, designers, musicians, architects, writers & creative people in the South West. We provide advice & service, new & old equipment, printers & scanners, upgrades & repairs, software, memory, Giclee printing & Internet Services. iMacs from £999, MacBooks - £820, MacBook Pros £1399, MacPro Towers £1725 + VAT. New and second-hand available. Talk to Pete Douglas - 0117 983 6999. Tantra, 48 Kensington Park Rd, Brislington, Bristol BS4 3HU (9am-6.30pm, + Sats, Off Bath Road past HTV, near MFI) e-mail: pete@tantraweb.co.uk web: www.tantra.co.uk

constellations

“Well, it’s like this... the counselling & psychotherapy section starts with geographic and specialist areas, leads onto the general c&p ads and ends with counselling training.” “Makes sense to me.”

c&p bath Core Process Psychotherapy

Bath I offer a safe space for you to explore your thoughts and feelings about the issues and relationships in your life. I will support you in developing insight and tapping into your own well-being in order to find new ways of relating in the world. Sue Abbotson 0778 844 1845. Diploma in CPP, working towards UKCP registration sue@psychotherapy-bath.com

c&p bristol Clear, expert and competitive computer support • PC repair - at your location quickly solving your PC problems (including viruses) on all Windows systems and most software programs • Helping you buy - advice on new equipment, helping you make the ideal purchase for your system • Maintenance - speed up your system with a spring clean • Training - get the most from all your Microsoft products by learning how to use them effectively • Efficient and straightforward - no nonsense communication explaining everything clearly without lots of techie jargon. Free initial survey of your equipment. Graham Simmonds 0117 909 2690; 0797 714 9171 graham@gscservices.co.uk www.gscservices.co.uk Supporting individuals, voluntary, NHS and private organisations across the Bristol area for over ten years

Two Year Training in Family Constellations with Barbara Morgan, assisted by John Ainscough Founded by German philosopher and psychotherapist Bert Hellinger, Family Constellations is becoming an increasingly familiar phrase within therapeutic and spiritual circles, with the potential for healing both individuals and whole families. This training gives participants a good, basic grounding in the work with plenty of opportunity for personal work, experience as a representative, understanding of the underlying orders and philosophical stance of constellation work. Dates 2012: 11-15 April, 6-10 June, 5-9 Sept. Dates 2013: tbc. Bath. Further information, full programme and application form: Barbara Morgan theknowingfield@gmail.com 01373 301168 or 07966 755509

Heart-Centred Constellations, Bristol

What can igeek do for you? • We design, deliver and support great websites for all kinds of organisations • We have a talented team of developers, using the most creative, robust and secure technology available, to give your organisation real online presence • We are experts in e-commerce with a wealth of experience that enables us to maximise your online selling potential • Using FileMaker, one of the world’s most popular and versatile desktop database systems, we design, create and support outstanding database solutions for Mac, PC, iPad and iPhone. Why not speak to us today and make a fresh start for your business? www.igeek.co.uk 0117 370 2469

Since 1993 we've been busy helping the West Country to change Thanks for your support on the way

Constellations are beautiful. They offer to modern Westerners what shamans have always done: help us into harmony and balance with ourselves, others, environment and life. Workshops: Lineage Healing, Beyond Dilemma, Lifeblood Song, the Way of the Ancestors. Please check website for upcoming workshop dates. Private consultations: please enquire. Dr. Kerstin Schmidt www.honeyspring.co.uk 0791 001 2419

cooperatives

Co-operatives are a good way of doing business with social or shared goals - they are memberowned and guided by internationally agreed values, ethics and principles. The CDA can advise you on all aspects of setting up a co-operative: whichever type of co-operative you are interested in, be it a Worker, Consortium, Community, Housing, Food or Consumer co-operative and whichever sector of business, be it renewable energy, alternative therapies, food or any other. There are many reasons why people set up co-operatives, talk to us about yours. Using nationally recognised model rules, incorporating can cost as little as £40. CDA (BRAVE Ltd), Tel: 0117 989 2536, Email: info@cda.coop Website: www.cda.coop

For the past 15 years I have successfully worked with a wide range of clients, addressing issues including; relationships, sexual abuse, bereavement, parenting, depression, loneliness, anxiety, assertiveness and self-confidence. “Energized, that is how I have been feeling since I started working with Barbro... finally through counselling I have found peace of mind and joy in my life.” Client’s testimonial. I see individuals and couples in a supporting atmosphere at St Werburghs Counselling and Psychotherapy Practice in Central Bristol. Some concessions available. I am a fully qualified counsellor and hold P.C Dip. Couns., PAIIRS., MBACP and CCYP. Please call Barbro Magnusson; 07988 516 845 www.barbromagnusson.co.uk

I believe that understanding our emotional currents and belief systems is where lasting change begins. Achieving change also needs clear strategies for new thought processes and behaviour. The choice for change may be self-driven, or in response to unplanned events. My approach is creative and integrative, combining CBT, Systemic and Person-centred methods. I have both training and extensive experience in working with individuals (including young people), couples, families, and organisations. Depending on your needs, I work short-term and long-term. I can help with a range of life-limiting issues, from relationships, self-esteem, and anger, to struggles with transitions, depression, eating difficulties, anxiety and OCD. Collean Evans-de Souza MSc, PG Dip Couns, Cert CBT, Cert Young People, Dip Systemic Therapy, MBACP Accred. Tel: 0117 907 1620 Mobile: 07866 687 146 www.vinehousecounselling.co.uk

it’s not the speed that’s important, it’s the direction

I provide a safe, supportive space in which individuals and couples can explore their thoughts and deepest feelings, unfold their potential, find a greater sense of well being and connect with a more empowered and authentic sense of self. My experience of working with life issues includes: Abuse • trauma • confusion • repetitive patterns • depression • anxiety • low self-esteem • assertiveness • anger • guilt • obsessive behaviour • addiction • phobias • bereavement • separation • relationship difficulties • loneliness • blocked creativity • loss of direction/sense of purpose/motivation • stress • redundancy • career development. Bryan Greene: Dip.Counselling and Psychotherapy, Dip Advanced Transpersonal Psychotherapy, Dip. Supervision, Certified Imago Relationship Therapist. For more information please see www.bryangreene.co.uk or to arrange an initial meeting tel: 01275 395 215

Skilled in listening and understanding and an empathic and experienced practitioner. Sue offers healing and a safe, supportive space to encourage personal growth and positive self-esteem, often making lasting changes in a relatively short space of time. This is not prolonged therapy or fanciful theories, but a down-to-earth approach that brings rapid results in areas such as anxiety and stress, bereavement, burnout, depression and relationship difficulties. 27 years’ therapeutic experience; currently in holistic counselling and healing, and originally as a medical doctor (general practice/psychiatry). Individual sessions in Clifton & Stroud. New group: Art of Letting Go see Courses, Groups & Workshops. www.drsueedgley.co.uk 01453 885707

People often assume that to change and overcome one’s limitations is necessarily slow, difficult and painful; that therapy, like childhood medicine, is something that has to be endured but it does you good. No gain without pain, as they say. This, however, has not been my experience. I have discovered that change can be surprisingly swift and easy, as well as deep and pervasive; that therapy can be immediately rewarding and create lasting results. Sonam Gyatso is an NLP Psychotherapist, a member of the Neuro Linguistic Psychotherapy & Counselling Association, holds two diplomas in Hypnotherapy, and is a Master Timeline Therapy Practitioner and Colour Light Therapist. For appointments or ffi call: 0117 983 5832 or e-mail: sonam.gyatso@blueyonder.co.uk NA

Perhaps you are stuck with • feeling blue • stress • sleep issues • anxiety • unwanted habits • smoking • phobias • migraine headaches • IBS. Call or e-mail me to discuss how to live a life you’ll love. 07740 375028 www.heather-malcolm.com heather@heather-malcolm.com

Affordable Counselling in North Bristol

From a warm and safe environment we can work together to explore your needs. Qualified counsellor. Free initial session Anne 07503 567336 www.bristolcounselling.me.uk

Affordable Supervision with Accredited Counsellor Integrative, Central locations. Mo Cahill: mocahill@live.co.uk 0792 225 4618

ad orrates visit www.thespark.co.uk on inside back cover for more info or to book online index counselling Affordable Therapy for Women

(£25-35 sliding scale) I have 20 years’ experience, trained with Integrative approach. Art therapy and dreamwork also offered. Happy to work short term. Issues might include being in a period of change, loss, addiction, sexual orientation, deep sadness, illness, menopause, anxiety, relationships, spiritual crisis, etc. Phone Maxine 0117 329 7600 or 0781 494 3965 (free initial 30 minute consultation)

Alma Vale Centre

We are experienced, UKCP-registered psychotherapists who trained and for many years worked at Spectrum, a centre for humanistic and integrative psychotherapy, in London. We provide psychotherapy and counselling on a range of issues, and work with individuals, couples and groups. We also offer supervision to psychotherapists, counsellors and others working in the health professions. Marion Russell, Erica Witt, John Witt. Alma Vale Centre, 30 Alma Vale Road, Clifton, NA Bristol BS8 2HY Tel: 0117 377 1186

Becky Watkins Clinical Psychologist Psychotherapy, mindfulness. www.beckywatkins.co.uk becky.wellbeing@gmail.com 0773 058 6725

Stressed out? Difficulties with the kids? Need help? Learn some new skills provided by Oxford Centre of Cognitive Therapy (Centre of Excellence in CBT) trainee. Central Bristol (BS1) & (BS6) locations. £25 per 60mins consultation. www.lucymwalker.com Lucy M Walker, MBPsS, BSc(Hons) Psychology & Health Science, lucy@lucymwalker.com ABT 0753 421 8877

Core Process Psychotherapy

Bristol An opportunity to bring awareness to whatever is going on for you, in an atmosphere of safety, warmth and acceptance. That awareness brings more choice and is, in itself, the start of the healing process. Free First Meeting. NA Katy Taylor, UKCP Reg: 07952 064702

Core Process Psychotherapy

Bristol Creating the space to bring all of you. Helping you find your way towards meaningful life and vitality. My background is in Spiritual Care and Teaching. Free first meeting. Achalavira Rose, male senior student MA. NA 07795 820 293

Core Process Psychotherapy

Existential Counselling & Psychotherapy David Wakely MA UKCP reg. I offer a constructive approach in a confidential environment, working with you to clarify problems and explore ways forward that respect who you are and your situation in life. I work with a wide range of issues including depression, anxiety, self-esteem and self-image, anger, stress, sexuality and sexual orientation. As an existential practitioner, I am interested in relationships of all kinds, identity, direction, isolation, loss, and the creation of meaning. Based near Whiteladies Road, Bristol. Tel: 0784 951 9277 Email: david.wakely@hotmail.com www.davidwakely.co.uk

Terry Davey (UKCP) Work with both individuals and couples covering a wide range of problems. I offer a fully embodied and relational approach to change, both empathic and challenging, encompassing our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual nature. I have particular expertise in trauma (PTSD) and abuse. Call 07969 000317 www.bristoltherapy.co.uk

Integrative Body Psychotherapy & Supervision

Janine Mather UKCP registered 18 years experience of working on all - levels, mental, physical, emotional & spiritual, with problems including: Post Traumatic Stress, depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms & spiritual emergency. Individual and group supervision available for psychotherapists & complementary practitioners. 07971 783374 janine.mather@virgin.net

Integrative Counselling

A warm, accepting, safe environment. My role is to empower clients so they reach their full potential. MBACP. Monika Przybyl-Diaz 0788 153 2815 www.terapiabristol.wordpress.com

Integrative Counsellor

Jenty Goodyer (Dip. Counselling, member of BACP, RGN). Rooms in Montpelier and Whitchurch. Fee negotiable owing to a number of low-cost spaces. 07974 760398

Person-centred Counsellor

Clifton and City Centre. I offer a safe and confidential environment to work towards greater awareness and growth. Free assessment www.tammycounselling.co.uk MBACP 0797 021 9799

Psychotherapy

Therapist in training with bcpc (advanced stage). Bristol. Fee: £25. Silke Kuball 07910 536431

c&p bristol north Buddhist Therapist, Bishopston, BS7

Kamalamani - MSc, Adv Dip Integrative Counselling, Adv Dip ERT, Dip CBT, MBACP I offer a warm, supportive, active, relational approach, appropriate to each unique individual’s needs. This is supported by my diverse further training in Embodied Relational Therapy, bereavement counselling and CBT. Please call ffi, tel: 07905 147 968 info@kamalamani.co.uk www.kamalamani.co.uk

Buddhist-based psychotherapy using compassionate awareness to explore difficulties and develop understanding to create the potential for change and well-being. Free Introductory. Helen Gunson. Senior Student. 0117 951 7878 NA

Sometimes we can feel overwhelmed, sad, angry, scared or just that things don’t feel right. Talking to someone in a safe and understanding environment can help us to begin to take control of our lives and feel more positive about ourselves. Lesley Brentley Dip Couns BA MBACP 0778 674 T 2459 lesbrentley@hotmail.com

Jon Hastings (UKCP Registered)

Integrative psychotherapy and counselling for individuals and couples in Stroud and Bristol. 25 years experience. Professional supervision and groupwork also offered. jonrhastings@gmail.com 01453 831315

Core Process Psychotherapy

Low Cost Humanistic Integrative Psychotherapy NA

Counselling for Recovery. Maggie Tweedy

Dip. Couns., BA, BACP member. Person-centred, 12 Step, cognitive and depth counselling. Relationships, abuse, food, drugs and general counselling. AB Bristol and Stroud. 07854 183740

Safe. Warm. Respectful. Understanding. www.bristolpsychotherapist.co.uk Alice: 0117 924 0992

Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy

Dawn Kingston MBACP 0117 941 4710. Fee £32. Surf: www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counsellors/ dawn-kingston

In Core Process psychotherapy we work to bring awareness to the habits and defences adopted to cope with life. Increased awareness can open up space and choice to ‘do oneself’ differently and uncover inherent health and wellbeing. I offer a welcoming space for this life-enhancing enquiry. Free introductory meeting. Katharine Rider - MA in CPP. www.riderpsychotherapy.co.uk 0781 344 9797

Counsellor and Psychotherapist

Neil James Counselling, Central Bristol

Counselling Person Centred - Frenchay, Bristol

Sue Ryall I provide a supportive space in which people can explore their concerns and struggles in depth. I have 25 years’ therapeutic experience in various settings, working with people from a diverse range of backgrounds. Central Bristol location. UKCP reg. sue.ryall@blueyonder.co.uk www.sueryall.co.uk 0117 921 1148

Providing experienced, friendly counselling & therapy If you need to talk things over with a neutral party then feel free to contact me. Relationship, sexual orientation or depression issues? I have over seven years experience. First appointment £10, thereafter £20 Contact Neil James DipCouns Mobile: 0759 280 1218 Email: bristolcounselling@ymail.com

“Creative Relations” is an art that can be practised and developed like any other. Patterns of communication are explored to see how they may limit or extend human contact. Developing awareness gives the opportunity to choose more honest, creative and dynamic relations. Jane Cutler is an experienced UKCP accredited therapist. She works from a psychosynthesis and psychodynamic perspective. Jane works with individuals and groups as a psychotherapist, mentor and supervisor. An eight week group begins in January. Please contact Jane for further details on 0117 963 2505 janecutler@creativerelations.org.uk

c&p psychotherapy

Depression, Despair, Trauma, & Anxiety One-to-one counselling available. See also my entry under “Courses, Groups and Workshops”. Gestalt. John Dykes; coursesandcounselling@gmail.com

c&p bristol south Counselling/Low Cost Psychotherapy (£20)

Fourth Year Psychotherapy Trainee (Gestalt) 25 years Adult Care Social Work - experienced many life issues and challenges. I offer warm, sympathetic support with a wide range of issues eg loss, health, past history, work-related, change, depression, anxiety, confidence. Short/long term. Weekly/fortnightly. Initial telephone discussion. First session free. 01275 837487 www.mariabelliscounselling.co.uk S(12),T

c&p families / young people Help! Counselling

Counselling & psychotherapy for 9-25 year-olds and support for those caring for children No limit on the number of sessions. Sites across Bristol. Also in Bath, Taunton and Exeter. We ask for an affordable contribution to our costs. You choose: the payment, the issues and how many sessions. All staff CRB checked. ABC Tel: 0117 950 2511

c&p groups & group therapy

Integrative Counsellor for Children, Young People, Adults

Core Process Psychotherapy

Within a warm and accepting space you can find your own truth. I will be alongside as we explore your experiences of life together, allowing new understandings to emerge and inviting change. Offering sessions at a reduced rate as a senior student working towards UKCP accreditation at Karuna. Free first meeting. Pauline Battson 0798 1638967

Em Sawday M.A. Psychology, Relate Cert C.C., BACP Accredited. Modern life puts stresses and strains on all relationships. I have 25 years’ experience of helping couples and individuals find creative ways towards more satisfying ways of relating. I offer long and short-term focused work and combine my Relate training with an active Gestalt based approach. Tel: 0117 973 8213

Integrative Body Psychotherapy & Counselling

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)

Bristol Whether you feel out-of-step with life or have a specific issue, the gentle and compassionate CP approach can help to bring awareness to what is happening, which may then help you to find the strength and potential to heal. Free introductory meeting. Sue Allen MA UKCP Reg. 0117 968 5315

Couple and Individual Counselling

Weekly psychotherapy group Experience the unique healing power of the group. Explore, at your own pace, how limiting deep-rooted patterns can be unlocked by engaging with others in a safe, confidential group setting. Over time achieve healthier integration of yourself with family, friends and colleagues. Early Monday evenings, central Bristol. Treasuring ourselves, embracing others A trans-cultural experiential group. Interpersonal and societal conflicts often have their origins in cultural differences. Fear of others can sometimes trigger uncertainty, challenging our sense of belonging and identity. We feel diminished. Yet only when we feel able to show our true selves can we find a valued place within family or community. This 12-session weekly, 90 minute, group enables participants to engage in potentially liberating dialogue in a creative, supportive and confidential environment. Central Bristol. For more details contact Alan on 0117 921 1148 alan.turkie@googlemail.com

of course you can... with the spark courses, groups & workshops ads start p38

Overcome the obstacles that hold you back. Gestalt Psychotherapy views each person as an individual with their own subjective experience of the world. It works by looking at the here and now experience of the person and will unravel any unhelpful patterns of behaviour or beliefs that may affect living life to its full potential. There is an emphasis on the therapeutic relationship and working creatively. This can be done through simple dialogue, artistically or through movement. Gestalt is spontaneous and experimental, bringing your very being into awareness. For further info see: www.katejoyner.com Email: kate@katejoyner.com Tel: 07791 527522

Psychotherapy in Central Bristol with Tone Horwood

Registered by UKCP as a psychotherapist and by HPC as a Dramatherapist. I offer psychotherapy from a Humanistic & Integrative perspective to individuals, couples and groups, and supervision to Arts Therapists, counsellors and psychotherapists. Ffi 0117 972 1077 or toneh@talk21.com

c&p relationships Relationship Over?

...We Can Help! Divorce or separation can be painful - and costly. Family mediation is the first choice for couples who want to achieve a negotiated settlement when their relationship is at an end. Resolve the issues arising from your break up effectively, economically, quickly, conveniently, amicably. www.progressive-mediation.co.uk frances@progressive-mediation.co.uk 0117 924 3880 0788 903 9393

c&p somerset Jenny Oliver Psychosynthesis (UKCP)

Individual sessions for relationship and personal change issues. Tel: 01458 241205 / 0777 922 7181

c&p stroud Counsellor, Body Psychotherapist, Supervisor

Allison Priestman. Exploring body experience; supporting people to be authentically themselves. Also Body Psychotherapy workshops and training courses. Tel: 01453 731226 www.allisonpriestman.co.uk AT

☞ Dr Sue Edgley

Counselling & healing. MBBS MRCGP MRCPsych. See C&P Bristol section

☞ Jon Hastings (UKCP Registered) Integrative Psychotherapy and Counselling See C&P Bristol section more counselling ads over the page

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couns index - cours want to advertise in advertising? The Spark?more see inside info onback inside cover back forcover info

c&p general

Integrative Counselling

Rob Porteous MA, Dip H.I.C., BACP accredited. Long/short term counselling for individuals. 0117 971 3805

c&p training

Most of us want to feel safe, secure and loved. It is important that these needs are met in the first two years of our life. When absent it can result in difficulties, in adulthood, in our relationships. It can cause addictive behaviour and other difficulties. I offer a safe and confidential setting for you explore your thoughts, emotions and concerns, enabling you to make positive changes in your life. I use a variety of approaches in my work tailoring them to your needs. I offer individual and couple counselling, heterosexual and same sex, in Westbury Park. Please give me a call for a chat, to book a free half hour introduction. Christine Lunt 0117 924 6581 or 07900 176226

Openings is a cooperative of psychotherapists, counsellors and a clinical psychologist based in the centre of Bath. We work with adults, adolescents and couples, on both a short or long-term basis. We provide a confidential, supportive place where you can explore a range of issues. Therapeutic approaches include: Psychosynthesis, Humanistic & Integrative, Person centred, Core Process, Gestalt, CBT, Neo Reichian, Transactional Analysis and Transpersonal. Best way to get in touch is to visit the website which explains more about the therapists, their approaches and gives their contact details. Or email / ring the administrator (available to speak to on Monday and Thursday a.m.) for information or for a leaflet. www.openingsbath.org.uk email: openings.bath@talk21.com Tel: 01225 445013

We come to therapy for many reasons: personal problems, interpersonal difficulties, general dissatisfaction with life or for personal development. I work out of Core Process Psychotherapy because it offers a contemplative, spiritual, yet down-to-earth approach. CPP is in tune with my own views of what is truly helpful to the client. It offers a heartfelt acceptance of the client and honours their way of working. My practice is set in Wiltshire countryside; a rural retreat near Castle Combe, a short drive from Bath and Bristol. It is easy to find. I offer a Free Introductory Meeting. Phone Andrea Legh-Smith UKCP 0124 978 2516 or aleghsmith@gmail.com

Core Process Psychotherapy

Provides an opportunity to reflect on habits and patterns that have developed to manage your life. The Core Process approach is relational and works with you in a gentle, compassionate way to bring awareness to what is happening and may help you start the healing process. Free first meeting. Susanna Hoare - Senior Student. 0117 932 4323 www.susannahoarepsychotherapy.co.uk

The Exeter-based CHPC Training has been delivering Professional Trainings, Introductory and Post-graduate Courses in Gestalt Therapy since 1988. More recently we have been offering training in Groupwork based on Gestalt and Humanistic models. 2012 Mar - 2013 Jan: Diploma in Gestalt Psychotherapy. 10 weekends and one 5-day at East Down Centre, Devon. Cost £2055 (payable as deposit £495 and 3 instalments of £520). Applicants must have minimum of two or three years Gestalt Training experience, or be able to demonstrate that they have acquired knowledge of Gestalt Theory at some depth, and experience of Gestalt Therapy, in other ways. Additionally they should have been in personal therapy for a minimum of three years and, preferably, be seeing clients and in Supervision. Closing date for applications: 31st December, 2011. Full details: Jenny Dawson 01395 269076 jeniandaw6@gmail.com or David Kalisch 01392 811835 d.kalisch@btinternet.com website: www.counselling-training.org.uk T

Sweet-Track is a centre for Psycho-Spiritual education providing accredited professional counselling trainings. The courses are designed to create a learning environment, where we support the development of self-actualisation and professionalism by integrating physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual growth. This is a Path of the Heart, where every person is nurtured as a unique individual. Our aim is to empower people’s spiritual expression and respect each others differences. Accredited by CPCAB. Non-residential Courses in Glastonbury. Level 2 Counselling Skills - 8th Sep ‘12 start Level 3 Counselling Studies - 5th Nov ‘11 start Level 4 Diploma Therapeutic Counselling - 2013 Level 5 Diploma Psychotherapeutic Counselling April ‘12 Day workshops - Spiritual Counselling - 17th March & 19th May ‘12. CPD cert . 01458 835552 / 833933 www.sweet-track-counselling.co.uk info@sweet-track-counselling.co.uk

courses - green Permaculture at Threshold Cohousing Community

Introductory Weekend 28/29 April (£150), followed by full Permaculture Design Course over six weekends May to November 2012 (£480). Gillingham, Dorset. lindascabbagepatch@yahoo.co.uk

Experienced Psychodynamic Psychotherapist

Bristol/Bath, Individuals and couples. Range of issues, including early attachment difficulties and trauma. Celia Cooper BACP Accred. UKRC & FPC Reg. 0775 797 9392 info@innerspace.counselling.co.uk

An eight-week evening and one-day course created originally by Jon Kabat Zinn using mindfulness meditation to help us be present in a consciously spacious and kindly way with all the things we find difficult in our lives. Mindfulness - the practice of being fully present with all of our experiences without fear. Not an easy fix but something real that can benefit our self and others. Ongoing programmes. Contact Philippa for Bath and Bristol and Laurence for Bristol. Full details: Philippa Vick 01225 445532 philippavick@tantraweb.co.uk www.bath-bristol-mindfulness-courses.co.uk or Laurence Milburn 0117 924 9455, lawrence.milburn@homecall.co.uk

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ME Recovery Retreats • Break the cycle of ill health and start improving your well-being • Understand the mind/body connection • Learn effective techniques to reduce and manage symptoms. • Three day residential programme near Frome, Somerset • Travel can be arranged if required • Restful, peaceful, rural location • Small groups • High-quality accommodation • Nutritious meals. • Training by supportive, caring, professionals • Post-course support via email, forum and telephone available • We are with you every step of the way. www.CFSrecovery.co.uk Sky Blue River Coaching & Therapy. 01579 308232

Embercombe exists to touch hearts, stimulate minds and inspire committed action for a truly sustainable world. We are a social enterprise in a beautiful wooded valley overlooking the tors of Dartmoor, with orchards, meadows and organic garden. For people seeking to take their next step into action, The Journey is our core programme, a powerful 5-day residential with highly skilled, experienced facilitators. Accommodation is in cosy yurts with acclaimed home-cooked food. Catalyst is our version of this for 18-25s. We also offer bespoke leadership and culture change training for businesses seeking to place sustainability at the heart of what they do; beautiful conference space for 100 with accommodation; WWOOF and other volunteering; Land Based Learning day visits and residentials for Schools and Teacher Training. 7 miles from Exeter. Tel: 01647 252983 www.embercombe.co.uk

Classroom courses in Bristol. Diploma in Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy for future practitioners. The Clifton Practice (CPHT) Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma Course is a comprehensive ten month part-time course. Weekend or weekday courses are available comprising approximately 150 hours of classroom study. Successful graduates receive Diploma in Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy (DHP) accredited by the NCFE (NVQIV). Designed by practising professionals, this course will give you a thorough knowledge of the application of ethical clinical hypnosis, enabling you to become an effective practitioner. Discounts are available for students outside the Bristol. For forthcoming course details and brochures call The Clifton Practice on 0117 317 9278 or visit our comprehensive website www.cpht.co.uk

Discover who you really are. An Enlightenment Intensive is a uniquely powerful group process. It provides a real opportunity to directly experience the answer to the ancient question “Who am I?” There is no teaching - just a pure, intensive process of self-discovery over three and a half days. If you have a sincere desire to be more awake and more real, to experience a breakthrough in consciousness, or to find greater depth and meaning within yourself, an Enlightenment Intensive could change your life. Next date: New Year: 29 Dec 2011 - 2 Jan 2012. Barry and Emma McGuinness, www.enlightenment-intensives.info 01225 446972

courses, groups & workshops

Counselling

North Somerset & surrounding areas I have 20 years experience of working with people on reaching their full potential. If you are finding it hard to change things or are feeling disconnected from those you already have relationships with, counselling may help. “Change is Possible...” Within easy reach J.19 of M5 and south Bristol. 0780 557 6758 www.shirleythatcher.co.uk

We now run three cycle maintenance courses: a basic evening course, and two intensive day courses. These sessions will introduce you to bike mechanics in a relaxed and supportive environment. You don’t need previous experience, just the desire to get hands-on and skilled up. The aim is to save you money and demonstrate just how empowering and enjoyable cycle mechanics can be with a few tools and right knowledge. Spaces are limited to just four students per tutor. Once you ve completed a day course, we’d love you to come back and use our facilities at either the Bike Kitchen or Women’s Night. www.thebristolbikeproject.org Hamilton House, Bristol

Sign up now and be qualified to offer a truly revolutionary approach to slimming without scales, calorie counting or strenuous exercise in the Spring when people are most interested in slimming. Training comprises (i) a combination of reiki, hypnotherapy and EFT (ii) the study of the 7 Golden Rules of slimming as featured in the book Journey of the Slim Soul and (iii) following the 8 week programme that includes a detox, all with the author of the book herself, trainer at the Clifton Practice. Date for next training: 5th, 6th and 7th March 2012. Email angesdelumiere101@gmail.com or call 0791 460 6729. www.journeyoftheslimsoul.com

Dramatherapy: an active form of therapy that emphasizes theatre techniques and embodiment through drama, to facilitate imagination, personal development, healing, change. • ‘Acting 4 Real’ Weekly Group 8 eves; starts January 10th. Master Classes for Continued Professional Development. Bristol: • ‘A Golden Thread’ 11th-12th February. Following intuition; reclaiming creativity. The Sesame Approach of dramatherapy, with Martin Gill, £220 • ‘Our Time’ 13th-15th April. Drama as therapy to benefit wider society. Sociodrama and Forum Theatre applied to communities, groups, and cultures. Martin Gill & Rachel Perry, £320 Attend both for 10% discount. Scenario Arts in Personal Development 01225 427601 Rachel@scenario59.freeserve.co.uk www.dramatherapy.org.uk Member of the Health Professions Council

Dynamic courses, tranquil surroundings, delicious food, lovely views. Only 40 minutes from Bristol or Bath. Come and be looked after! Short courses and events now booking.... December: Festive Crafts Day • Painting & Drawing • Jesus & Myth January: Future Self Now • Speaking with Confidence February: Helen Chadwick Song Writing & Concert • Metamorphic Technique • Cathar talk March: Interfaith Experience • Rosen Method • Soap-making • Skincare • Equinox Year-round • courses • venue hire • sculpture studio. For full programme and information, contact us now: Hawkwood College, Painswick Old Road, Stroud GL6 7QW 01453 759034 info@hawkwoodcollege.co.uk www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk more courses ads on p40

ad orrates visit www.thespark.co.uk on inside back cover for more info or to book online index courses

It’s not just you who doesn’t like being the centre of attention and it’s not just Emma who doesn’t want to come on my course Academics • Actors • Actuaries • Alexander Technique Teachers • Anaesthetists • Animators • Architects • Artists • Arts Administrators • Authors • Bankers • Barristers • Best Men (lots of them) • Biologists • Brides (not so many) • Business Owners • Carers • Carpenters • Civil Engineers • Civil Servants • Change Managers • Charity Workers • Church Wardens • City Council Officers • Clinical Psychologists • Coaches • Comedians • Company Directors • Complementary Therapists and Trainers Commissioning Manager • Communication Trainers • Consultants • Counsellors • Cycle Trainer • Dads • Design Managers • Designers • Development Manager • Doctors • Editors • Educational Psychologists • Engineers • Environmental Consultants • Environmental Performance officers • Entrepreneurs • Estate Managers • Estate Agents • Executive Coaches • Facilitators • Factory Inspectors • Festival Organisers • Film Directors and Makers • Film producers • Freelance all sorts • Fundraisers • Furniture Makers • Furniture Restorers • Gardeners • Geologists • Golf Club Captains • Government Officers • Grandads • Grannies • GPs • Head teachers • Health Administrators • Health Visitors • Housewives • Housing • Hypnotherapists • Human Resource Managers • Image Consultants • Information co-ordinators • Investors • IT People - lots • Lay Readers • Lecturers • Life Coaches

“Everyone there felt the same, no-one liked public speaking and no-one wanted to be there! After chatting to people I discovered that we had all secretly hoped that we had flu on the day of the course or the car broke down so we didn’t have to go! It was so nice to see that other people had exactly the same worries and panics as me when doing presentations and it’s not just me”

• Logistics Engineers • Managers – lots • Managing Directors • Management Accountants • Mathematicians • Media Officers • Medical Herbalists • Model Makers • Mums • Music Manager • Naval Officers • NHS Consultants • Nordic Walking Instructor • Occupational Lots of people think it is just them that suffers with stage fright. As Psychologists • Older People Emma found out that it’s not true. Over the last eleven years I’ve had • Opticians • Osteopaths people from all walks of life do my course, as you can see from the list • Patient Advocate • Painters of occupations that I’ve gathered from my feedback forms. • Personal Trainers • Pharmacists • Physiologists • Pilots Emma continues... • Planners • Podiatrists • Police “I never expected such an improvement in just one day! The way Officers • Probation Officers you change how people feel about public speaking can be applied to • Producer • Product Designer all aspects of life. The whole day was an eye-opener on how to chill • Production Manager for TV • Project Managers out about public speaking and life in general! Some of the tips • Psychiatrists • Psychotherapists • Psychologists • Publishing you gave were invaluable.” • Recycling Officers • Researchers Emma • Retired People • Sales Managers • Sales Reps My passion is helping you find your voice when you are the centre of • Self-Employed • Sewing attention so you can take part in life more fully. I help you to understand what’s getting in the way and then teach the new skills you need to be more Technician • Shamanic practitioners • Social Workers • Software yourself in front of a group. Engineers • Solicitors • Speech To do this I offer a different type of public speaking course. It’s not and Language Therapists about how put on a front - it’s about how to really connect with people. • Statisticians • Stone Carvers Once we learn the new fundamentals of public speaking, it becomes • Styling designer • Street outfar simpler and more possible to be the centre of attention. I also run an reach respond worker advanced course for people who want re-think presentations and to • Stress management consultants fully engage the audience rather than just dumping large chunks of • Students (lots of them) information on a bored audience. • Supervisors • Systems Engineer • Tax Inspectors • Teachers • Tefl I run courses in Bristol, Bath, London and Manchester. I’ve been a teachers • Town Clerk • Trading Licensed Speaking Circles® facilitator for over 11 years. (I was also the Standards Officers • Trainers • founder of the Spark magazine way back when!) Training School Owners • Transport Officers For a chat or to book a course ring John Dawson on 01225 425300 or • Unemployed • Vicars email john@speaking-infront.co.uk or see my website for course dates • Volunteers • Wood Carvers and information. All courses come with a money back guarantee. • Writers • Web Developers • Yachtsmen • Young People • Zoologist (finally, I’ve been waitlike Emma, you can change how you feel about public speaking ing for a Z)

www.speaking-infront.co.uk

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courses

One day workshops held regularly in Bristol. Novice: For people who have never picked up a pair of needles. By the end of the day you’ll have learned the six basic skills you need to start your own knitting adventure. Get creative! Throw away the patterns and find out ways to work with your own imagination and innate creativity. Gain the confidence you need to create your own personal and unique knitted works of art. Find out more: www.knit101.co.uk or email knit101bristol@gmail.com or call Charlotte Rooney on 07825 345109

Reiki is one of the most gentle but powerful tools available to develop your potential in all areas of life. It is easy to learn and apply in just one weekend! Learn how to use Reiki for healing yourself and others and how Reiki can be used in many everyday situations to transform your life. Reiki is probably the most wonderful gift you could ever bestow on yourself! I aim to provide high quality training. My classes are informal, small and friendly so that all students are guaranteed personal attention and support. For more information tel: 0117 957 1845 e-mail: lvhubbard@aol.com website: www.reikitraining.net

Are you on the path of Ascension? Are you willing to prepare yourself, others, and the Earth in ushering in the new higher vibrations of pure Love, Light and Freedom? Magnified Healing© of the God most high of the Universe is an ancient healing modality brought forth by Lady Master Kwan Yin for the spiritual advancement of Humanity and the Earth, and was developed by co-founders Kathryn Anderson and Gisäle King. Workshop includes: alignment of spiritual centres, clearing of the light Channel, balancing of chakras, healing of Self and Others, healing of the earth and preparation for Ascension. Please contact Natalie 07879 430658, natalie.evans@blueyonder.co.uk Official website www.magnifiedhealing.com

Transcendental Meditation (TM) is simple, natural yoga for the mind. It’s easy and enjoyable to learn, effortless to practice and it lasts for life! Our fully qualified, highly experienced and enthusiastic teachers offer expert instruction in this simple, effortless meditation. Learned by more than 6 million people worldwide and validated by more than 650 scientific research studies, TM shows benefits such as improved sleep, improved memory, concentration and energy, reduced anxiety and depression, clearer thinking and reduced use of alcohol and tobacco. No concentration or visualisation needed: learn to meditate effortlessly! Beginning Saturday 17th March. Free information pack available from The Meditation Trust charity on 01843 841010, info@meditationtrust.com

“I still don’t know how you manage such a high quality mag with so few people!” JH

Mindfulness - paying attention to life as if it really mattered’ (Kabat-Zinn). Mindfulness has demonstrated efficacy for enhancing health, managing stress, anxiety and chronic pain. Practical applications to work, play, relationships, family. Initial, no-obligation, introduction followed by 8-session Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) courses. Location: The Relaxation Centre, 9 All Saints Road, Clifton BS8 2JG. Week-Day (pm) and Saturday courses from mid January. Enquiries and bookings 07789 200685 tim.mason@dsl.pipex.com More detail at: www.mindfulness-west.com BT

Spring 2012 workshops and courses in Bristol with Shantigarbha Warren • 2-Day Nonviolent Communication (NVC) Foundation Training, 18-19th February. Become more present. Deepen trust and connection in your relationships. Learn how to resolve conflicts peacefully. • Mindful Communication course, 17th April onwards (six Tuesday evenings). Improve your communication with mindfulness and empathy. Think and communicate more clearly and effectively. • 2-Day NVC Deepening + Anger (intermediate) training, 12-13th May. Express anger fully without blame, attack or threat. Receive anger in ways that increase safety, respect and understanding. For further information and booking: phone 07584 486415 or visit www.Seedofpeace.org

Professional Training • Workshops • Free Taster Days. Introduction to Psychophonetics: Free taster days • 11th December, Stroud • 8th January, Bristol • 11th January, Cheltenham • 14th January, Glastonbury. Workshops: • “The Healing Power of Sounds” 20th-21st January, Bristol; 25th January, Cheltenham • “The Art and Science of Empathy” 21st February, Birmingham • “Parenthood as a spiritual path” 7th March, Cheltenham. Experiential Weekend: “Psychosophy” 13th-15th April, Stroud. Professional Training Course Foundation Year taught in 4 block courses of 8-days each starting on 17th of April 2012 in Stroud. Special Event - February 2012 Humanising the Workplace Workshop at Findhorn Foundation (Scotland). Contact: uk@psychophonetics.com tel: 079201 00794 www.psychophonetics.co.uk

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• Increase energy • balance spiritual development • improve health. Sacred Geometry Courses with Jaime Delgado Orea, international teacher and therapist. Jaime has spent more than 20 years studying energetic healing systems and draws from his work as a shaman with Apaches and Lakota, Incas, Maoris, and Aztecs and Maya in Mexico. He also practiced Chinese, Philippine, Vietnamese, Tibetan and Japanese techniques for many years, and became a Tenri monk. Level 1: 16 & 17 March, Level 2: 18 March Participants will be equipped to carry out selfhealing processes, give therapies in Sacred Geometry and use the techniques for distance healing. Certified by our organisation and by the IUMPE. www.jaimedelgadoorea.com

Dr. Claudio Naranjo’s internationally renowned retreat programme begins in the UK in 2012. Organized around his pioneering work on the Enneagram of Personality, it combines practices from the spiritual, therapeutic and expressive traditions. The aim is to explore who we have become, how we became so, and how we might care for the self in a search for greater freedom and flourishing. The first workshop (SAT 1 – Living from the Passions) takes place on the 27th of March to the 2nd of April. “I came away profoundly challenged and expertly guided by his training: inspired to recommit to a lifetime’s work in bringing my authentic self more fully into the world.” Rajan Rasaiah, Coach and Writer. For further information: www.naranjoinstitute.org.uk Email: info@naranjoinstitute.org.uk Tel: Charles Keck 07980 066779

Yule Retreat and Celebration Schumacher College offers you the chance to escape from shopping, sales, piped music, and exhortations to buy more! This winter why not slow down, reflect, and enjoy the simple winter pleasures of baking, craft and conviviality. The retreat is open to everyone and fees include your four nights stay, food and access to the College’s many facilities including its grounds, extensive library, and meditation room. Come along, we’d love to see you! 12-16 December Retreat fees £300: all course fees include accommodation, food, field trips, all teaching sessions. www.schumachercollege.org.uk 01803 865 934 admin@schumachercollege.org.uk Yule Retreat and Celebration: www.schumachercollege.org.uk/courses/yuleT retreat-and-celebration

We have been providing Psychodynamic counselling and training, accredited by the Westminster Pastoral Foundation, since 1983. This is a BACP accredited training. Psychodynamic counselling places significance on our early experiences as shaping our psychological development and our relationships. Developing awareness of how these early experiences continue to impact on our current lives is at the heart of our approach. If you are interested in discovering more we are currently recruiting for:ˇ • Diploma in Counselling (starts Sept ‘12) • Foundation Course (starts Sept ‘12) • Continuing Professional Development Modules (twice termly). For information and our prospectus contact us at Wessex Counselling Service, Fairfield House, King Street, Frome BA11 1BH Tel: 01373 453355 e-mail: office@wessexcounsellingservice.co.uk www.wessexcounsellingservice.co.uk

Practical Spirituality. Socially engaged, emotionally literate, concepts and skills you can use and share immediately. March 10/11 • The Endorphin Effect. April 14/15 • Three Golden Keys. May 12/13 • The Sword and The Chalice. June 9/10 • Your Heroic Journey. July 21/11 • Strong and Clear “Inner peace as easy as breathing. William Bloom has an encyclopaedic knowledge of meditation.” The Independent. Venue: Glastonbury, St Mary’s Church Hall. 0845 3452102 • 01372 272400 www.williambloom.com

Bath/Bristol Eight Week Mindfulness MBCT Course

A course of clear and coherent mindfulness meditation instruction combined with CBT to help prevent depression, anxiety and stress related problems. The course has helped many to gain perspective and calmness, and experience living life more positively. Combe Down Branch Surgery, Bath and Bristol venue. See www.mindfulnesscoursesbath-bristol.co.uk ACT or call John Waller UKCP 01761 437214

‘Body Heaven’

Evening/Weekend Workshops. Mindfulness. Massage. Reiki. Relationship Skills. 01225 743686 www.jacquijarosy.co.uk

Certificate In Nutritional Healing 8-week course accredited by NHF. Bristol. http:/nutritionroots.org.uk

The Confidence Course

Learn tools from Hypnotherapy and Mindfulness to increase Confidence and Well-being. Six-week course starting 30 January 2012. www.stephanie-hypnotherapy.co.uk Call Stephanie Betschart: 07731 784 254

Depression, Despair, Fear, and Anxiety

Group(s) forming in 2012 to explore, educate, and modify the influence of these elements in our lives. North Bristol. 8-10 weeks, £10 per week. One-to-one counselling (Gestalt) is also available at low cost. Email John Dykes; coursesandcounselling@gmail.com

Introducing Formative Psychology Does one really know oneself? And the meaning and point of life? Theory is fine, but is there the inner stillness and wisdom to see straight, to live life to the full? This introductory course is designed to engender fresh perception and cheerful discussion. Explore great schools of thought and ways of living, from east and west. Prior knowledge of philosophy is not necessary, yet an open mind is always attractive and useful. Ten week courses begin January, May and October. Held at Bristol Grammar School. £69; £49 concession; students £20. 01225 722 136 haydon.bradshaw@zen.co.uk Bristol School of Philosophy, branch of The School of Economic Science, Educational Charity 313115 www.philosophycourse.com

• Love what you do • Make a difference to your life & the lives of others • Learn tried and tested techniques to improve health & wellbeing • Transform your life with sound Lyz Cooper has spent many years developing techniques based on ancient knowledge, cutting edge science and research. She was approached by Radox to help create ‘the most relaxing track ever’ with Marconi Union. It was independently tested and found to be more relaxing than conventional music due to the therapeutic sound she added. Lyz runs The British Academy of Sound Therapy an award-winning company and has courses and workshops running accross the UK. Lyz Cooper MA.Ed. 01243 544454 www.healthysound.com

Ongoing Saturday morning group exploring Formative Psychology and how to apply it personally and professionally. Stanley Keleman created and developed Formative Psychology; his premise is that, by voluntarily engaging with how (not why) we form ourselves, we actively influence and change how we relate to ourselves and the world around us. John Witt: has been using Formative Psychology as one of his main methodologies since the early eighties. For further details leave a message on 0117 974 1548

Parenting with Compassionate Communication

Courses offering practical skills for moving through parenting challenges to increasingly effective communication and deeper connection with your children. www.thelaughinggiraffe.co.uk 0117 962 2216

or visit www.thespark.co.uk for more info or to book online Touch for Health Kinesiology

Regular weekend workshops to learn fun natural healthcare system using muscle testing, close to M5, Bristol. Suitable for all. Call Tamsyn 0845 257 1137 www.touchforhealth.co.uk ABC

The Wisdom And Power Of The Seasons with Richard Royds. Five Element Acupuncture Discover and experience the energetics of each season and the corresponding relationships to our own selves for positive, sustainable health at all evels. Five weekly evening sessions to discover each of the Five Elements, both in Nature and in the nature of our own being, followed by a seasonal workshop for Spring. For further information contact Richard 01225 723856 richard@naturalbalanceacupuncture.co.uk www.naturalbalanceacupuncture.co.uk Member of British Acupuncture Council.

Women’s Creativity - The Seasonal Festivals Eight workshops starting December 2011. www.mandypullen.co.uk 0782 675 2202

☞ Retirement/Reduced Hours Workshops

with Deborah Clarke, Chartered Psychologist. See Coaching section

craniosacral therapy A Gentle But Powerful Treatment

Popular for healing a wide range of emotional and physical condition in adults/children. Lynn Shorthouse Craniosacral therapist, family counsellor. 0777 9535562 www.lynnshorthouse.co.uk

Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy

Bath based. Low-cost clinic available. Contact Elise 0774 769 1484 www.in-stillness.com

Craniosacral Therapy. Chiropractic McTimoney Method. Spinal Touch

Joanna Hanstead DC. Using and teaching gentle bodywork since 1987. Free spine checks. All ages welcome. Bath, Frome. www.johanstead.co.uk 0777 390 6273

cours - dea

Subtle Bodywork: Adults, Children, Babies

• Injury • anxiety • stress • anger • trauma • autism. Millie Wood Swanepoel RCST. Bristol, Dursley, Stroud. 07754 182 082 m.wood.swanepoel@googlemail.com www.milliewoodswanepoel.com

dance

The home of Dance Movement Psychotherapy offers sessions for adults who want to explore their inner self, focus on self-development and life management. We look at our emotions, relationships and state of being through the creative process of dance & movement, free expression, the use of props such as materials, hoops, sticks, art materials etc. There is no right or wrong way of being, everyone has an inner dance! Sessions are appropriate for: people who value dance as expression or release; people suffering from:• depression • stress • anxiety • OCD • bereavement • addiction recovery • other mental health conditions. Sessions are held on Thursdays 10.30-12.00 all women, 1.30-3.00 mixed gender. For further information and a referral form contact Dance Voice Therapy and Education Centre, Wedmore Vale, Bedminster, Bristol, BS3 5HX on 0117 953 2055, email admin@dancevoice.org.uk or visit our website www.dancevoice.org.uk

dance like no one is watching love like you’ll never be hurt sing like no one is listening live like it’s heaven on earth.

William Purkey .

You are invited to a skilfully guided session of catalytic zen-tantric-shamanic movement practice within the form of the 5 Rhythms® dance Wave. An eclectic mix of global tunes and inspired musical art encourage opening to your ecstatic earth body, invoking such sweet spirit-freedom you may wonder how you ever stayed away from this fiercely beautiful rite of delight, where you play midwife, to the birth, of your own embodied soul. Leigh has been dancing the Rhythms since 1989 and is accredited by Gabrielle Roth. Big welcome to all beginners, 5 Rhythmers, contact jammers, free dancers and everyone who loves to move! Wednesdays 7.30-10pm, £10. St Michael’s on the Mount, Cotham BS2 8BE. Last class before Xmas, Dec 21, a Solstice Special. Begins New Year on Jan 11th. And for 2012 The Community of Dance 5 weekend ongoing group 24-26 Mar, 21-22 Apr, 19-20 May, 16-17 June, 14-15 July. Email leigh.dance@virgin.net for further info

Somaterra work is grounded on a co-creative process exploring, cultivating, and deepening the relationship between body-self and Earth through movement, eco-somatics and feminine medicine ways. It offers a resourceful practice that evokes intimate, sensitive, restorative ways of being and relating within the web of life. Somaquest: “True seeing happens through the body”. Outdoor movement journey inhabiting... opening our bodies to receive the land’s messages. April. Women’s Gathering: A shared healing day experiencing the crafts of weaving, movement, storytelling... and magically interweaving them! March. Carla, currently training as a somatic movement therapist, brings years of experience in environmental movement, shamanism, women’s health, and eco-therapy. Contact: 0794 636 4898 c.esteves@live.co.uk

Bath. Ecstatic Dance. Sue Kuhn

Wednesday 6.30-8.45pm. St Marks School, Baytree Road. Weekends. 01225 465846 www.suekuhndance.com

Conscious Clubbing Dawn Morgan is the creative director of Shapeshift Dance. She works with conscious embodiment through the ecstatic exhilaration of the 5 Rhythms Wave and the gentle internal listening of somatic body education. Shapeshift links with and organises events with other groups and practitioners. For visits to Bristol, National, International events please check website. Weekly • Monday evenings 5 Rhythms Sacred Dance 7.15-9.15pm and • Wednesday Mornings 10am-12.30pm with Dawn & Nick Twilley (live Music) both in Stroud GL5 1BN. Weekly Class • Birmingham, B13 9LR Thursday term-time, 7-9.15pm. Continuum with Cheriona in Stroud, 22nd January, Somatic Conference in Stroud, 27-29 April. www.shapeshift.co.uk dawn@shapeshift.co.uk 01453 750608

Free your soul - alcohol-free, positive energy dance events. www.consciousclubbing.co.uk

Shiva Shakti Dance

A dance of remembering the deep feminine. www.natalie-brooks.co.uk/shiva-shakti 0797 326 7232

death & dying Heaven on Earth

Award-winning Green & Pink Bespoke Funerals from £1550. Eco-coffins. www.heavenonearthbristol.co.uk 0117 926 4999 (24 hours)

ABT

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dentists & dental care

Friendly, family dental practice in the heart of Hotwells, offers you a complete dental service, from replacing your mercury fillings to a full mouth make-over - giving you back your healthy Natural Smile. We take the time to understand you as an individual, your concerns and desires, and view your dental treatment as part of your whole health. Sensitive, caring, dentist and team who take pride in minimising their impact on the environment. Selection of natural oral hygiene products available and free checkups for children (see website for more details). Principle practitioner Dr Nicola Bone BDS DPDS. 251 Hotwell Road, Hotwells, Bristol BS8 4SF. www.thenaturalsmile.co.uk 0117 929 2165

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food

The Bay Tree has been under new ownership for 18 months now, and apart from the usual paraphernalia expected of an upmarket independent health store, we now stock an extensive range of fairtrade gifts, cards, toiletries and perfumes. Our volume and choice of home cooked food, including vegan, vegetarian, wheat and dairy free, has increased dramatically and we now cater for parties. If you require freshly made sandwiches or salads, ring by 11am and we will have them ready for collection. 176 Henleaze Road, Bristol. Tel: 0117 962 1115

Provamel soya products are dairy, gluten, wheat and GM-free and are made exclusively from ethically sourced, sustainably produced and organically grown soya beans. Our beans are grown in areas far removed from rainforests and by our extended family of small organic farmers in China and Brazil, many of whom we’ve worked with for decades and to whom we pay a premium price. They are then transformed into delicious alternatives to milk, yoghurt, cream and dairy free desserts in our carbon-neutral factory in a process that’s entirely chemical-free. Provamel products are available exclusively from Holland & Barrett and independent Health Food stores. Customer Careline: 0800 111 4224 info@provamelhelpline.co.uk

design, writers & print Beccy Golding

Writer, copy editor, proof reader With 15 years’ experience as a Youth & Community Worker in Bristol and 8 years as Production Manager for The Spark I have the skills and experience to help you or your organisation with • annual reports • publicity leaflets • advertising • website content • press releases • funding applications • essays & dissertations • CVs and job applications • any other written material. For friendly, efficient, thorough and professional help with anything from brainstorming your first ideas to a completely finished, proof read document, email beccygolding@blueyonder.co.uk

The one-stop natural shop specialising in all things organic, ethical and ecological. New shop and cafe now at the old Woolworth store in Glastonbury. And don’t forget the new website: www.earthfare.co.uk Earthfare, 45 High Street, Glastonbury. Tel: 01458 831004

drama, performance & film Movement Coaching for Performers

Ensure your physicality reflects what you want to communicate on stage or film. Actors, singers, musicians, presenters, comedians and others... Liz 07949 363350 www.movementor.co.uk

South West Fringe Acting Opportunity

Four actresses for production of “Four Little Girls” by Picasso. 20% share earnings based on door take. Bath/Bristol-based. gurunick@btinternet.com

feng shui

• Lost direction in life? • Worried about money? • Unable to find love? • Or always feeling tired? Feng Shui works by bringing the energy (chi) in your home into balance. Geopathic stress removal, electromagnetic risk analysis, Nine Star Ki for best timings, best directions for sleeping, etc. Garden advice and space clearing, also included. Are you Sleeping in a Safe Place? Try my House Health Check for health/sleep issues or my Home Sale/Purchase Service for selling or purchasing a new home. Find out more today: Tracy Longdon, FSSA, National Accreditation of the Feng Shui Society, Graduate Consultant, Feng Shui Academy. 07795 285467 tracy@tracylongdonconsulting.co.uk www.tracylongdonconsulting.co.uk

We do all our own distribution** 34,000 copies to a shop, clinic or venue near you visit www.thespark.co.uk to find your nearest distributor

Food You can Trust from your local Natural and Ethical Grocer. Harvest has been at the forefront of organic, non-GMO, vegetarian and ethical choices since 1971. Our Bristol shop was voted second Best Independent Health Store nationally in the 2007 Yaoh Vegan Awards. Harvest remains passionate about offering the widest selection of ethically sourced, earth friendly, organic and real food alternatives you can trust. Our extensive range includes many vegan and gluten-free choices; our tasty delis offer many locally prepared sweet and savoury specialities. In a world of supermarkets and faceless chain stores, Harvest is your local independent workers’ co-operative food store, providing fresh, friendly and relaxed service... discover a unique and special shopping experience. • Part of the ground-breaking Essential Trading Worker Co-operative. Bristol: 11 Gloucester Road, BS7. 0117 942 5997 www.harvest-bristol.coop Bath: 37 Walcot Street, BA1. 01225 465519 www.harvest-bath.coop

Your local Wholefood Healthfood & Nutrition Centre • Cafe & Takeaway • New Salad Bar • Top quality dried fruits, nuts and seeds • Top quality groceries • Organic & GMO free foods • Vitamin and mineral supplements • Special dietary needs • Qualified nutritionist in-store • Herbal & homeopathic remedies • Sports nutrition 100 High Street, Portishead Tel: 01275 817178

**now with a little help from the lovely people at Essential. Thanks guys

Radford Mill Farm Shop has been trading in Montpelier, Bristol since 1979, selling organic fruit and veg sourced as locally as possible, including Radford Mill Farm, our 115-acre farm 15 miles southeast of Bristol, managed organically since 1977. We produce a wide variety of dips, sandwiches, quiches, soup, pizza and cakes in our organic kitchen, all of which can be enjoyed in our small café with indoor seating. We also sell wholefoods, herbs and spices, Hobbs House breads, natural soaps, toiletries and we accept bulk orders. 41 Picton Street, Montpelier, Bristol, BS6 5PZ. Tel: 0117 942 6644. Open Monday-Friday 9am-7pm, Saturday 10am-6pm

At Riverford Organic Vegetables, available in Bristol, Bath and surrounding areas, we pride ourselves on our award-winning quality and best value. Boxes start at £9.85 including delivery and on average are 20% cheaper than the same produce bought in supermarkets. At least 80% of the vegetables come direct from fields in our co-operative in South Devon, some also from farms in Somerset and Wiltshire. You can have a box weekly, fortnightly or whenever you like and we can also deliver organic fruit, eggs, wine, meat, juices, pasta, chocolate and dairy produce from Riverford’s own dairy. Order today by calling 08456 800 918 / 0845 600 2311 or online www.riverford.co.uk

At the heart of the bustling Gloucester Rd, almost next door to The Cooperative. Specialising in an ever-expanding range of Organic Vegetarian and Vegan foods, all of which is guaranteed G.M.O. free by our main suppliers. We also provide a large selection of non-organic foods to give our customers choice, much of this available from bulk, reducing packaging to a minimum. Amazing ranges of cereal, nuts, fruit, roasted coffee from Brian Wogan (use our grinder), increasing range of Gluten and Wheat-Free lines, selections of Japanese and other ethnic foods. Supplements, homoeopathic (including Solgar, Higher Nature, Quest, Weleda, Bach), toiletries, etc, plus much more. Friendly, knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff. Member of The National Association of Health Stores. Reasonable prices, cards accepted £5+. Wheelchair access, help available with bulky items. Open from 9.00am until 5.30pm. Monday to Saturday. 113 Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8AT Tel: 0117 987 2199 www.scoopawayhealthfoods.co.uk

In addition to your favourite lines, you can refill your Ecover & Bio D bottles at our comprehensive refill station. Buy from our range of over 30 organic wholefoods & flours in scoop bins, and make big savings! We are also proud to stock Lavera bodycare & Lavera Trend Make-up, Dr Bronner magic soaps & Urtekram Bodycare products. We have a large range of chilled products & stock the best range of organic wholefoods south of the river, including gluten free & wheat free pastas, biscuits & breakfast cereals. Our cheese counter includes locally sourced & some vegetarian cheeses, and we have organic bread from Herbert’s Bakery. Coffee including fairtrade & organic is ground to order, and we have a good range of fruit & herbal teas. If you’re celebrating, our organic wines & local beers include champagne and beers from Bristol Beer Factory & Bath Ales. We also stock Tushies gel-free nappies, products from “Green Baby” & paper liners for brown recycling bins. 262 North St, tel: 0117 966 4507. Visit our website www.southvilledeli.com

Welcome to the wonderful world of Wild Oats Natural Foods. “A veritable Aladdin’s Cave to gladden the eye of the most discerning foodie.” Health Expertise. At Wild Oats you can be sure of the best quality of service brought to you by expert staff and 30 years of experience. In many cases we can help you reach new levels of fitness and mental clarity using only natural foods and products. 100% Money-back Guarantee. Providing you with the best solution for optimum health means we can also guarantee results. If a product doesn’t do what we say, we will refund your money with no quibbles. Website. If you cannot come to Wild Oats in person for the service we offer in the store, visit our website: www.wild-oats.co.uk. Here you can buy from a range of over 7000 lines and take a virtual tour of our store. So for the best in fresh and natural foods and expertise in optimum nutrition, drop in to Wild Oats and check us out, where Mike, Loes and the gang look forward to welcoming you at Wild Oats very soon. Wild Oats Wholefoods, 9-11 Lower Redland Road, Bristol BS6 6TB Tel: 0117 973 1967 Fax: 0117 923 7871 www.woats.co.uk

garden

We create shrines to hold your special memories of people, animals or places. Or to act as a focus for your contemplations. We build sanctuaries, small and large, where you can retreat from the turmoil and stress of everyday life. Special places where only your rules need apply. Somewhere you can connect with the divine or just chill out. Options include both bespoke and pre-created designs. Shrine and Sanctuary is a collective of artists, feng shui practitioners, landscape designers and landscape builders. We combine our spiritual vision with an ethical and sustainable approach to our work. View new designs at www.shrineandsanctuary. co.uk Email us at info@shrineandsanctuary.co.uk Tel: 01666 860043

www.bristolcyclinggardener.com

Zero-emission garden maintenance and bicycle repair service Matt 0771 686 3533

or visit www.thespark.co.uk for more info or to book online

gay, lesbian & bisexual

herbal medicine

gay - hypno

hypnotherapy

Rhizome Community Herbal Clinic Affordable herbal treatments. Becs Griffiths. t: 0741 239 9154 www.rhizomeclinic.org.uk

A free, confidential service which provides information and support to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and transvestite community. We also provide support to people concerned about issues to do with their sexuality, as well as to anyone with concerns about a friend or relative. We offer advice about safer sex, have an extensive information database and run a house-share service. If we can help, or if you just need someone to chat to, our lines are open Wednesday and Thursday, 8pm-10pm. 0117 922 1328

green energy

“We are already perfect as we are, healing comes with this remembering” Powerful hands-on healing to empower you on your journey through life. Clear, balance and re-structure your energy fields to achieve energetic, physical, emotional, mental and spiritual harmony. I have experience in many healing techniques which include: • Colour and Sound Healing • Chakra Balancing • Intention Alignment • Emotional Clearing • Relationship Cord Healing • Inner Child Healing. “I felt very safe with Sue and felt that she was reverent with the vulnerable parts of me and my experience which I brought to healing.” - Linda Graduate of The School of Energy Healing. Sue Pullen DESH www.positivelight.org.uk 07743 329412

Brennan Healing Science

Ethical Solar are proud to be installing some of the most sustainable and cost effective solar systems in the UK. We firmly believe that it shouldn’t cost customers more to do the job right. The systems we install are high quality performance-tested systems with the lowest possible embedded carbon attached. We are an experienced, enthusiastic and caring team who are committed to making every installation hassle-free for the customer. Everyone in the office loves to talk about solar, so give us a call or visit our website to find out how solar power could benefit you. Web: www.ethicalsolar.org Tel: 0117 314 9040. We’re here to help.

Gentle but profound healing which can be life changing. Clears, strengthens, balances and restructures the energy field. Helps overall state of health and well-being. Can remove energetic blocks that lead to disease and enhance the body’s natural healing ability. Graduate, Barbara Brennan School of Healing. Susan Greenfield, BSc.(Hons) Dip. Couns. RGN 01225 758340 www.suehealerbath.co.uk

Buqi (boochee) Energy Clearing Therapy A strong but gentle and non-invasive treatment for emotional and physical dis-ease by revitalising energy flow. First treatment half price. Catriona Mundle Dip.BuqiTherapy 0117 924 7163

Feel Better...!

How do we stay healthy & calm in this modern world? Try healing yourself and others with Johrei, a form of healing from Japan, for your health & happiness. Experience Johrei at our free drop-in hours Tuesday & Thursday, 6.30pm-9.30pm, Wednesday 10am-1pm. All welcome. British Johrei Society, 77a Alma Road, BS8 2DP. 0117 949 3360 www.johrei.org.uk

Quantum Healing Past Life Therapy British Renewable Energy Association Award Winners: Company of the Year 2011 Solarsense are installers of both Photovoltaic and Thermal hot water systems and have over 15 years experience. We have installed over 5000 systems, from town houses to the UK’s most famous solar system at Glastonbury’s Worthy Farm. Free surveys and quotations offered. There has never been a better time to install - with The Feed-in Tariffs which began last year and the new Renewable Heat Incentive coming soon you could earn 10% return per annum whilst saving the environment. Solarsense UK Ltd. Helios House, Brockley Lane, Backwell, Bristol BS48 4AH info@solarsense-uk.com www.solarsense-uk.com 01275 461 800

healing

Using the ‘Dolores Cannon’ technique to explore past lives and release patterns that may draw recurring negative experiences in this lifetime. Instantaneous self-healing of physical, mental and emotional conditions may also be provided by contacting the subconscious to facilitate healing. Contact Julia: 0117 9192 766 www.juliahypnohealer.com

Tara Therapies - Clevedon, North Somerset Restore your health and wholeness: physical, emotional, mental. Crystal therapy, colour therapy, spiritual healing. Also Tarot readings. www.taratherapies.vpweb.co.uk Jill Rhys Jones - 01275 877280

health & beauty Blissful Beauty & Hair Treatments

Treat yourself to affordable beauty therapy. Choose from head massage, facial, make-up, hair trim or waxing. Therapist works from home. Free teas! Call Jenny: 0771 740 1953

health shops

“A miracle is merely a shift... A change of perception” Energy Healing aids the process of letting go of old belief systems in order to move into present reality by facilitating the journey back to wholeness. Working with energetic blocks held in our 7 energy fields acquired through life experiences, Energy Healing is working with the Chakra system (energy centers) using a variety of techniques including Inner Child, Celestial, Colour / Sound Healing, Relationship cord Healing, Astral clearing, Core alignment, Shamanic and Breath-work. The individual is held in a loving supportive way encouraging rebalancing with connection to spiritual realization. Also, Holistic Energy massage • Hypnotherapy • Spiritual counseling • 1-2 day Workshop/Retreat facilitating, I have 24 years experience working with the human body in a non structured way. 2004 Graduate of the School of Energy Healing UK (recognized by CMA). e: lynnhunt@me.com w:web.me.com/lynnhunt m: 0777 893 2516

holidays - activity Alexander Technique on Greek Island of Alonnisos Freedom and awareness mid crystal-clear seas, olives, pines, wild herbs, boat trips, snorkelling. 0207 253 2022 alexpen@onetel.com www.alexanderingreece.com

holiday cottages Devon. Bantham Beach. Two Beautiful Wooden Studios

Close to stunning beach, river, cliff walks. Ideal short breaks, retreats. • Spa studio, £80pn. Sleeps 6. Outside jacuzzi. 1 double bed en-suite. 4 singles. Large living space. Wooded gardens. • Sunset studio, £55pn. Overlooks Burgh Island. Beautiful sea views from bedroom. Sleeps two. Tel: 01548 561419 www.discoveryretreats.co.uk timhunt@fsmail.net

Want help with... Emotional, mental health or relationship issues? Stopping smoking, habits or addictions? Weight or eating issues? Managing pain or health conditions? Phobias or post traumatic stress disorder? Work, study or sports performance? Stress management, confidence and self esteem? Help is here! Mindscape offers holistic, client-centred hypnotherapy, EMDR, NLP and occupational therapy, supporting people with a wide range of issues to achieve their goals and dreams. I’m an experienced clinician, and aim to be gentle, respectful and empowering in my approach. Centrally based (Montpelier). For free initial consultation please contact Kate Mortimer (BA.Hons, BSc.Hons, MA, DipCAH, HPD, PNLP, Advanced EMDR, MNCH(Reg), RAPHP, HPC.reg) on 07810 510170 www.mindscapetherapies.co.uk

North Cornwall

The Old Stores - small village near coastal path & wonderful beach. Sleeps 6, 2 living areas, CH, 2 bathrooms. From £290 pw. www.treknowplace.com

Pembrokeshire Coast

Close to Presili Hills Mobile home in beautiful, secluded, individual spot on private land. Three bedrooms, sleeps 6 comfortably. Spacious and fully equipped. Ten minutes drive from lovely beaches. 2.5-3 hour drive from Bristol. A Perfect break! Weekends £150, week £300. For booking phone Lou-Lou: 0781 417 5822

holidays - health Welsh Coastal Accommodation & Healing

Log Cabin and Stone Cottage peacefully located on Pembrokeshire Border. Ideal base for walking, reflection, enjoying nature. Reconnection Healing and The Reconnection available. ABS(0),T Tel: 01994 453316

Are you going through a stressful situation or big life change? Do you need some space to work through a range of different issues? For over 10 years now I have been helping people deal with past and current problems, from traumas to confidence issues and from relationship problems to work and business related issues. I have an intuitive approach that draws on many different therapeutic ideas, with the goal of helping you connect with your inner power. With that awareness you can be free of the past and move forward with greater confidence, creating the life you really want. I also run personal development groups covering the Law of Attraction and Conscious Creation. For a free 20 minute telephone consultation call now on 0117 939 3999 or visit or www.braybrookehypnosis.co.uk or www.meditationbristol.com

holidays - holisitc Sen Tropic Holiday

Relaxing and earthy winter sunshine in Senegal, Africa. sofasola@yahoo.com 07551 928473

home & de-cluttering Affordable Decluttering

Organisation and Storage Solutions to make that extra space in your life! Also Property Presentation to get that sale! Call Alison on 07712 642609 / 0117 911 7556 www.homedecluttered.co.uk

homeopathy Lyn Clark: Registered Homeopath 25+ years experience. Consultations; mentoring; teaching. Home: 0797 488 7850 Clinic: 0117 974 1199

Tiffany Denny LCHE MARH RHOM New Products in store • Huge range of seasonal gifts, cards and toys. Green, Eco, Fairtrade & recycled. Jewellery, picture frames, gift wrap, wooden & soft toys, educational toys, baby rattles, re-usable bags, and the best range of greetings cards in Bristol • Luxury Gift Sets, aromatherapy oils, bath melts, natural and organic soaps and skincare products, Burts Bees, Epsom Salts, pampering face & body treatments. • Large range of Health Supplements to help with all ailments including winter blues and colds. Detox products and advice for the new year! Friendly and informed advice. Mail order and online buying. Health Unlimited, 248 North Street, Bristol, BS3 1JD Tel: 0117 902 0622 Fax: 0117 902 0790 www.silver-gecko.com

Reasonably priced Homoeopathic consultations treating all conditions, all ages. Effective alongside orthodox medicine. Home visits available. 216 Wells Road, Totterdown 0798 925 7461 contact@tiffanydenny.com

don’t miss the point The Spark listings now a full point size bigger! easier to read, easier to find what you need

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is a safe and very effective treatment for changing unwanted behaviours, attitudes and thoughts. It helps people make significant, positive changes in their lives in a relatively short period of time. It is particularly helpful with confidence and self-esteem problems and is one of the most successful interventions in the treatment of Depression and Anxiety, for which I specialize. Also: anger, blushing, insomnia, pain control, phobias, weight management, public speaking, exams and creativity. Available in Clifton, Bishopston and Windmill Hill. Call Stephanie for a free initial consultation: 07731 784 254 S(1) www.stephanie-hypnotherapy.co.uk

Hypnosis for Change

with Jayne Norman D.Psy. D.Hyp. AAMH. MHA. UKCHO. Hypnotherapist, Psychotherapist, Analyst. Registered Hypnotherapist assisting with emotional and physical problems. Encouraging growth and change whilst offering a kind and experienced approach towards relief and recovery. Working from The Bath Natural Health Clinic, Norfolk Buildings, James Street West, Bath BA1 2BT. Please contact me directly on 01225 760605

Solutions Focused Hypnotherapy - Your Key Julia Croft HPD, SFBT(Hyp), MNCH(Reg). Keynsham 0117 986 5201 www.keynshamhypnotherapy.co.uk

Stuart Taylor. DHP. LHS. MAPHP(Reg)

Clinical Hypnotherapist Hypnotherapy is a natural way to change your life. Stop smoking, gain confidence, banish anxiety, control weight, beat fears and phobias for good. Situated in the relaxing and friendly surroundings of the Bristol Natural Health Service, Horfield, Bristol. For Brochure/Free initial consultation, tel: 07840 269555 www.taylorhypnotherapy.co.uk

kin - nutr

kinesiology Izzy Burr Kinesiologist

Half price sessions from £20. Based in Bristol. izzyburr@gmail.com

Tabitha Gale

Restore natural balance and reach your goals. Tel 07989 376656 www.bristolkinesiology.co.uk

lightning process

Lightning Process practitioners. Living proof that it works! If you feel stuck and want to move on to a life you really love, then please have a look at the Lightning Process. We are happy to answer any of your questions. Pippa Adamson 0117 9658459 www.newleaf-changes.co.uk Hilary Allen 0117 9533430 www.hilaryallen.org.uk Clare Hudman 01453 750382 www.getbetter.me Heather Malcolm 07740 375028 www.changingforlife.org

martial arts Stav

The Norwegian Martial Art based on the runes. For free report on how Stav would work for you visit: www.iceandfire.org or text 0771 358 5954 for paper version

massage & bodywork Please note these adverts are for professional practitioners offering therapeutic, healing, remedial and/or relaxing massage or bodywork sessions. The Spark does not knowingly advertise, or accept advertisements for, sexual services.

want to advertise in The Spark? see inside back cover for info

Sarah Hoare BSc(Hons) MTI

music & sound

Experienced and dedicated holistic massage practitioner and tutor. Pain relief, injury recovery, pregnancy, well-being, self-development. The Parker Clinic 0117 924 5842, www.sarahhoare.co.uk m: 0797 671 0368

☞ Aromatherapy & Pregnancy Massage Relaxing treatments with Debbie Latchem See Aromatherapy section

meditation

Mindfulness Courses. Mindfulness promotes a way of being that helps us to take better care of ourselves and lead healthier and more fulfilling lives. It enables us to access inner resources for coping effectively with stress, illness or any difficulties we encounter in our day-to-day experience. Next Bristol 8-week Mindfulness Course: 9 January to 27 February 2012. Bristol Steiner School, Redland. Next Weston-super-Mare 8-week Mindfulness Course: 10 January to 28 February 2012. The Campus, Weston-super-Mare. Space is limited so booking is essential. www.mindfulness4all.co.uk Mobile: Miro on 07765 515 662 or Rachel on 07505 569 680 Telephone: Miro on 0117 376 3495 or Rachel on 01453 546 030 email: miro@mindfulness4all.co.uk

Living With Stress, Pain, Anxiety?

8-week mindfulness based stress reduction course - Jon Kabat-Zinn. Research shows reduction in pain, improved self-esteem. Contact Alyson 0788 229 4683 therapist@alysonhurst.co.uk

Transcendental Meditation

The effortless, natural experience of inner being for outer strength, clarity, creativity and stress-free life. Introductory Talk: Patrice Gladwin 0117 914 7127 www.tmbristol.org.uk www.t-m.org.uk/research.shtml

About Music Triodos is a different kind of bank. Unlike other banks, we only work with organisations that benefit people and the environment, from fair trade pioneers like Cafédirect, to green energy company Ecotricity. Whether you’re a personal or a business customer, you’ll speak to people who share your values. And you will be part of an extraordinary community of savers and investors, who want their savings and investments to change the world for the better. To use your money to make a real difference, visit www.triodos.co.uk or call free on 0500 008 720. Triodos Bank NV is incorporated under the laws of the Netherlands with limited liability and registered in England and Wales BR3012. Authorised by the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for the conduct of UK business. Registered office: Brunel House, 11 The Promenade, Bristol, BS8 3NN.

movement & bodywork

I offer a wide range of therapeutic manual massage techniques for treating pain and injury, as well as being great for relieving stress and promoting relaxation. I am a registered member of the Complementary & Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC), the Federation of Holistic Therapists (FHT) and the Complementary Therapists Association (CThA). Contact: Phone 07747 752 454, Email info@berkeleywilde.co.uk Why not visit my website www.berkeleywilde.co.uk

Deep Tissue Massage - Mobile Therapist Massage to break down adhesions and relieve muscular tension. 45mins - £20. 1 hour - £25. ITEC qualified. fleur.handley@talk21.com 0781 469 8915

☞ Philippa Vick’s 8 Week Mindfulness Course See Courses, Groups & Workshops section

money

Holistic Massage Therapist

• Aromatherapy • reflexology • hot stone. Harmonious surroundings. www.hardingholistic.co.uk Richard 0117 924 1044

Holistic, Remedial & Sports Massage Therapy Tim Bartlett MTI APNT Practitioner and Tutor. Massage and bodywork for healing, health & wellbeing. 0752 500 6880; BNHS, Horfield: 0117 944 4448 timbartlett@1way.co.uk

Ecology Building Society specialises in lending on run-down, derelict properties in need of renovation or conversion and for the construction of ecological new-builds. Mortgages are advanced against the value of the land or the unimproved value of the property, and funds can be released in stages as the project progresses. Mortgages are also available across the UK for: • Timber constructions • The purchase of woodland • Buy-to-Let properties in need of renovation • Organic smallholdings • Housing co-operatives. Please contact the Society for further details of their mortgages and savings accounts. Ecology Building Society is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. Ecology Building Society. Call 0845 674 5566 e-mail: loans@ecology.co.uk www.ecology.co.uk

An experiment in holistic creation of musical performance, Cosmos Organon is a constantly evolving group of musicians and researchers always open for new members. info@cosmosorganon.org

naturopathy Natural Health Consultant, Cheltenham Herbalist, Asyra bioenergetic treatments and nutrition. 07515 538650 www.lloydgee.co.uk

nlp Integrated Wellness

nutrition / diet Qigong is a way of directly experiencing and opening to the subtle energy known as Qi in oriental medicine. It connects us more deeply to the natural flow of energy around us and to the source of our aliveness. It is simple to learn yet challenges each person to their own limit. Benefits may include the healing of deeply engraved patterns of physical and emotional disharmony, increased vitality and clarity of perception, the cultivation of inner stillness and, most of all, a deeper enjoyment of being alive. Monthly courses in Bristol/Bath/Cheltenham/ Frome and summer camps/residential Qigong retreats with Daverick Leggett. Details: 0117 928 7280

As founded by Dr Shen Hongxun. A traditional method of Chinese Medicine to clean the meridians and organs by standing and moving exercises, spontaneous body movement and mental concentration. Old emotional tensions can also be released, leaving the practitioner clearer, happier and healthier. This simple and profound system allows beginners to experience its benefits quickly. Older students will be able to reach deeper states with their own practice. The course is open to all. There is no age restriction. Time: 10am-5pm. Cost £95 for weekend. Bristol Workshops 2012: 18-19 February, 16-17 June, 27-28 October. Enquiries to Ann on 0117 377 0103 e-mail: taijiwuxigong@waitrose.com

Holistic Massage & Bodywork

MTI trained practitioner working in Bristol & surrounding area Holistic massage is a flexible, client-centred approach to massage. It can be used to explore the blocks which keep us disconnected from ourselves and a sense of well being in our bodies; or simply as a way to relax and let go of stress and tension. To book a session or for more information please contact: Gavin Conochie, 0791 539 7077; o2binparis@hotmail.com

Cosmos Organon

Programmes for • Stress Management • Weight Loss • Body Image and Self-Esteem • Health Support. Yoga - Talking Therapy (NLP) - Massage. Enquiries/bookings please contact Susie 0781 3591919 www.integratedwellness.co.uk

Twin Hearts Meditation

by Master Choa Kok Sui Remove stress. Increase energy levels. 2-Hour sessions: • Bristol, last Monday monthly, 7.00pm. 07919 857537 • Frome, 2nd Tuesday monthly, 8.00pm, 07841 571809 • Bath, 3rd Wednesday monthly, 7.30pm, 07516 500569 • Calne, every 4th Tuesday (Dec 13, Jan 10, Feb 7, etc), 7.30pm, 07970 737006. Complementary healing on request. No previous experience required. Donations welcomed. www.ukpranichealing.co.uk

Explore your musicality through guitar, piano and/ or voice. One to-one tuition with experienced music facilitator. Beginners to performance level. See www.aboutmusic.org.uk Tel: 0117 953 2122

Explore Taijiwuxigong - a simple yet profound set of Qi Gong exercises for self-healing and energy development. Once learned Taijiwuxigong can be used for life. It works to improve body, mind and spirit at many levels. The gentle yet powerful exercises activate and clear the energy system, lighten the spirits and calm the mind. Mondays 7-8pm Windmill Hill. Lunchtime courses available from 1-2pm, Wednesdays or Thursdays, Bristol Folk House. Thursday evenings offer longer, relaxed sessions for deeper study 7.15-8.45pm, also at Bristol Folk House. Safe and suitable for all, and all are welcome. Call 0117 377 0103 or e-mail: wuxigong@gmail.com

Bristol School of Tai Chi

Est. 1983. Beginners to advanced courses for health/ relaxation start beginning of January 2012 Ben Milton 0117 949 3955 www.bristoltaichi.com

Be Slim, Be Happy, Live Abundantly: Imagine this... “I’ve lost over 3st.” “My confidence has grown.” Have you tried dieting with little success? Lou Palmer of Essential Awareness has been using The Hypnotic Gastric Band with fantastic results for 100s of clients over 5 years. • In a 1-to-1 session your mind will believe that a gastric band has been fitted • You will rid yourself of a lifetime habit of comfort and boredom eating! • Save yourself money! The Essential Hypnotic Gastric Band is far cheaper than the £7,000 the operation could cost you! Call 0800 840 6123 today and find out more

Are you: Living with on-going ill-health, low-energy, stress or general health niggles? Confused where to go for professional nutrition/mind-body health advice which can safely complement your medical care? I will provide you with personally-tailored: • Nutritional therapy and supplement/natural remedy advice • Mind-body medicine (breathing, relaxation and mind-clearing exercises) and self-care lifestyle recommendations • All based on the latest scientific findings Trade-price supplements available to all new clients. I have a nursing background and hold degrees in Nutritional Medicine (BSc)/Complementary Health Studies (MA). FFI call: Helen Cooke 07905 383203 helen@thesoulfoodcompany.org.uk www.thesoulfoodcompany.org.uk T

foodfitforyou.co.uk

Personalise Your Diet. Food Intolerance Testing. Feel Better Again! Louise 0777 9 642 563

Nutrition Consultation in Bristol

Restore your health with practical advice and achievable goals: nutritional assessment, personalised eating plan. Call today for free initial consultation 0117 376 34 95 www.eatforlifeuk.co.uk

Nutritional Therapy. Florence Neville. BA. DNN

Natural Nutrition offered in a holistic and approachable way. Please see my website for more details. Congresbury, North Somerset. 01934 877 415 www.florenceneville.moonfruit.com

or visit www.thespark.co.uk for more info or to book online ☞ Certificate In Nutritional Healing 8-week course, Bristol. See Courses, Groups & Workshops section

osteopathy

Paul Henaghan BSc(Hons) Ost. Registered Osteopath Bristol Positive Health is an established Osteopathic practice in Hotwells, Bristol, offering treatment for • back and neck pain • shoulder and arm problems • pelvis, hip and leg problems • sports and other injuries. Patients have found osteopathy helpful for many other conditions. Evening and weekend appointments available. 0117 376 3190, 39 Oldfield Road Hotwells Bristol BS8 4QQ Also at The Practice Rooms, 26 Upper Borough Walls, Bath BA1 1RH. Mobile: 0796 184 4852 Online booking for Bristol available at www.bristolph.co.uk

personal growth courses

Friendly & Intuitive Reiki Treatments & Trainings

with Interfaith Minister, Healer, Therapist & Reiki Master Rev. Nixie James-Scott I work from Windmill Hill clinic, Bristol. I run small, welcoming and inspiring weekend courses for Reiki 1 and 2 with ongoing 2-year Master Trainings. Regular Reiki shares and ongoing support for students. Also celebrant for bespoke ceremonies; funerals, weddings, namings etc. Call me: 0117 985 8036 nixiejames@blueyonder.co.uk

The Lightning Process can help you to live a life you’ll love by teaching ways to: • Handle stress better • Stop feeling blue • Increase your confidence • Increase your self-esteem • Handle long-term health problems better. Seminars in Bristol, Swindon and Cardiff. Call or email me to chat about how the Lightning Process can help you to live a life you’ll love. 0774 037 5028 www.changingforlife.org heather@changingforlife.org

Rainbow Reiki Correspondence Certificate

Renowned colour healer Suzy Chiazzari’s practical enlightening course and Spring workshop combines the power of the Rainbow Rays with Reiki. www.iriscolour.co.uk

personal growth practitioners

relaxing & winding down

Life Healing with Beccy Holland

Ready for a happier, healthier, calmer you? Make small shifts in self-perception that can bring about profound changes. www.lifehealingworkshops.net

readings Enjoy the restorative properties of heat, water and therapeutic touch and put the outside world on hold for a few hours. Experience the detoxifying delights of a sauna or steam room and de-stress with one of our extensive range of treatments, which include Holistic Massage, Reflexology, Thai Massage and Hot Stone Therapy. Everything you need for tranquility is here. For opening times and information about our spa and treatments please call or visit our website. 9 All Saints Road, Clifton BS8 2JG 0117 970 6616 www.relaxationcentre.co.uk

Psychological Astrology/Tarot

Gain insight - begin 2012 with strength. Parties welcome. Marguerite Ph 01453 298674 / 0796 297 0416

Tarot Consultations

Practical, in-depth, unhurried and thorough. Confidential and pertinent to your situation. £25. 0771 933 9175

rebirthing

rolfing

Rebirthing - Doug Sawyer

Rolfing realigns your structure by energising and freeing the web of connective tissue within the body: ‘The Organ of Structure’. The Human Being is more than a collection of parts. There is a pattern, an order, as in all matter organised into biological units. That pattern - how parts fit and work together - is a basic factor in well-being or its lack. Rolfing promotes well-being by enhancing the body’s pattern of organisation; alleviating poor posture, releasing tension, back and neck problems and stiffness of joints. Discover a muscular structure that’s free of pain. A posture within gravity that gives you a light, flexible and energised body. For more information, a free consultation or an appointment, call Simon Wellby 0779 969 3546

rooms & spaces

Deep Body Work

Pursuing balance and harmony mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally. Treatments. Massage. Attunement. Millie Wood Swanepoel, Reiki Master, teacher, practitioner 07754 182 082 m.wood.swanepoel@googlemail.com www.milliewoodswanepoel.com

Dissolve unwanted patterns that inhibit your happiness. Take a deep breath. Call Doug 0117 973 8073

reflexology

When you reply to an ad please say you saw it in The Spark. This really helps us. Thanks.

Rolfing is an effective method of realigning the body, and in so doing, alleviating related problems such as back pain, stiffness, muscular tension, poor circulation etc. The body is held together by a web of connective tissue. When a part of the body is injured or chronically held out of vertical alignment, the tissue shortens in certain areas, “fixing” the body into an abnormal posture. This new pattern limits our freedom of movement, and over the years tends to cause common painful symptoms. In the 1950s, Dr Rolf developed this hands-on method of freeing and rebalancing connective tissue. Contact: Anna Orren, 45 Trelawney Road, Cotham, Bristol BS6 6DY Tel: 0117 973 5987

Perfect opportunity for a small beauty or holistic therapy business Medium-sized treatment room and small office/ consultation room available for rent full-time. Located within a busy health and fitness club near the centre of Bath with free street parking opposite. Call to view. Ed on 01225 461463 / info@phase-one.co.uk

Bradford on Avon

Comfortable room in the Bridge Centre. View www.hypnotherapycentrebradfordonavon.com Contact Richard on 01225 722508

Cairns Clinic

Rooms in Westbury Park. Large bright rooms - view online www.cairnsclinic.co.uk Tel: 0117 942 8647 or mobile 0785 440 2725 for more information

Coniston Community Centre

Charity-run centre in the heart of Patchway. Beautiful modern conference facilities and attractive rooms. Very low prices. Coniston Road, Patchway, BS34 5LP. 0117 923 6878 www.conistoncommunitycentre.org.uk

Consulting Rooms To Let

Quiet location in St Andrews, Bristol. Reasonable rates, good parking. S(6) 01453 831315 Ad Hoc & Permanent Therapy Rooms currently available £20 per 4-hour session £15 for additional 4-hour sessions £10 per 1-hour ad hoc sessions Call 0117 9425832 for further information doug@bristoltherapist.com www.bristoltherapist.com

Consulting/Therapy Rooms

Alma Vale Rd, Clifton, Bristol Attractive, quiet and professional rooms in Clifton for psychotherapists, counsellors and coaches. Reasonable rates. For more information contact Kunderke Kevlin on 0772 764 4830 or e-mail: kunderke@gmail.com See www.45almavalerd.co.uk

Fabulous Rooms For Hire, Larkhall

Affordable light airy rooms available for hire now at The New Oriel Hall, Bath. Suitable for teachers, therapists or groups. 01225 466606 neworielhall@waitrose.com Fulcrum House has now been open a year! Located at 3 Grove Road, just off Whiteladies Road (Clifton/Redland) in a wonderful Georgian building, we offer six beautiful, contained, spacious and private rooms to psychotherapists, counsellors and complementary therapists working in an integrative way with individuals, couples and small groups. We offer both regular four-hour slots and single sessions. There are kitchen/rest facilities for staff and a small, quiet courtyard. We are also offering instant online booking! If you are interested in working at this exciting new centre visit our website at www.fulcrumhouse.co.uk or call 0117 330 5336 to arrange to meet us and view the rooms

Over the Rainbow, Cardigan Bay

Tranquil venue for residential workshops. Secluded Georgian mansion, large workshop space, quality accommodation, vegetarian catering, solar-heated water. Tel: 01239 811155 www.overtherainbowwales.co.uk

Subud Hall, Bristol

For hire day-times, evenings & weekends. Central, easily accessible location. Two spacious light halls, kitchen. Reasonable rates. Ideal for yoga, choirs, rehearsals. www.Bristol.subudhall.com 0759 305 4871

Workshop/Office/Studio (Bath)

Mains electricity, heater, sink, insulated, parking. £180 pcm inclusive. AS(0),T 01225 835599

Yogasara

Three warm, professional and sensibly-priced therapy and consulting rooms (with waiting room) within a landmark Georgian terrace with views over the water towards Queen’s Square and Welsh Back. We’re just by St Mary Redcliffe Church, with excellent parking and great transport links (including Temple Meads and the M32) with ready access to the city centre and south Bristol. For more information or to drop by just get in touch: phone Clive on 07947 023371, go to http://theharboursidepractice.co.uk or e-mail clive@theharboursidepractice.co.uk

Reflexology in Norton-St-Philip nr Bath. Introductory treatment £19. Call Janet 01373 834512 / 0781 709 8728

Bath Treatment & Consultation Rooms For Rent

reiki

I offer Reiki sessions and small friendly Reiki classes in North Bristol, Devon, South Wales and Wiltshire. I have been practising Reiki since 1992 and was initiated as a Master in 1996 by Ben Verheijden who trained with Phyllis Furumoto, the present lineage bearer and Inger Droog, who brought Reiki to Holland. I am a trained counsellor, Buteyko teacher, funeral celebrant, psychic and bodyworker. I use Reiki on myself every day; it sustains me physically, mentally and emotionally. For a leaflet, dates of classes, to book a session, Master Apprenticeships call 0117 924 6581, e-mail: christine@reikisouthwest.net www.reikisouthwest.net

nutr - sex

The Vassall Centre is suitable for all occasions, we welcome people of all faiths and are totally barrier free. We have 2 large conference rooms and 6 meeting rooms of various sizes which are all accessible and hold from 2-120 people. We can provide technical equipment. We have a wide selection of external caterers, or people can provide their own catering. Our prices are competitive with no VAT. View our website www.vassallconferencecentre.org The Vassall Conference Centre, Gill Avenue, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16 2QQ Tel: 0117 965 9630

Bristol’s first Community Interest Company, Not-ForProfit Yoga studio Beautiful studio available for hire for weekend courses. An outstanding space to share your work. A Community Interest Company, committed to sustainability, community and making this planet a better place. Be the Change, join us at Yogasara. www.yogasara.co.uk Picton St, Montpelier. Sarah or Chris Tel: 0778 950 1884

sex & sexuality

Teachings and ceremonial experiences to educate, illuminate and improve your sex life! Have you noticed that when your sex life is fulfilling, you feel more empowered? Do you long to overcome sexual hang-ups and relationship problems? Spiritual Sexuality Quodoushka 1 with international teachers Rose ThunderEagle Fink and Batty ThunderBear Gold. Poulstone Court, Herefordshire May 17-20. Course: £400, food/accommodation: £240 Sexuality teachings and ceremony from the Sweet Medicine SunDance Path. Open to women and men, singles and couples. Learn • how you function as a sensual, sexual human being • how to increase pleasure and knowledge tin your life Visit our website www.quodoushka.co.uk 01458 241831 crouchingcat@hotmail.com

sham - spirit

shamanism

want to advertise in The Spark? see inside back cover for info

Bristol School of Shiatsu

Established 1984, offers training courses from beginners to professional practitioner level. Please refer to Training section for further details www.shiatsubristol.co.uk

Mercedes Núñez

Shiatsu, a truly wonderful therapy for mind, body and spirit. Practitioner with twenty years experience. For treatments, supervision, tutorials and courses: 07837060375, www.shiatsuhealing.org Shamanic training. A year-long journey through this beautiful medicine wheel. • Learn and experience powerful healing techniques that shift the matrix of your energy field • Discover the ancient wisdom teachings of the Inca shaman • Become a healer, a coach, an inspiration to others or use this 4-part residential training to heal yourself so that you can be the change you want to see in the world. See website for details, dates, courses www.spiritoftheinca.com email: Spiritoftheinca@gmail.com Tel: 0776 525 8614

Rhythm of Life Shiatsu

Hi! I’m Kathryn, an advanced student offering treatments in a safe comfortable environment in SW Bristol. My passion for Shiatsu is inspired by my passion for living life to the full. The two are beautifully connected. For me, Shiatsu’s about helping people to awaken their full physical, emotional & spiritual potential. 0797 593 7841 rhythm_of_life.shiatsu@yahoo.co.uk S(10),T

spiritual paths & practices

Ho O Pono Pono

Are you in agreement or in resistance with your life? Clear your relationship with this simple, yet very powerful Hawaiian healing technique. With Robert Berman HA’a www.robertberman99.com

Honeyspring Healing, Bristol

• Healing and self-development, e.g. soul/essence/ power retrieval, extraction medicine, heart-centred curse unravelling, ancestral soul mending, constellations. Mind medicine • Shamanic journeying for beginners • Workshops: Lineage Healing, Beyond Dilemma, Lifeblood Song, the Way of the Ancestors. Dr. Kerstin Schmidt www.honeyspring.co.uk 0791 001 2419

Nature & Spirit. An Invitation

Do you long for Time & Space to be creative; to renew your connection with Nature & further your Spiritual Path? www.lucyvoelcker.co.uk 01453 839 233

Shamanic Shoestrings

Offers core/cross culture Shamanic healing, soul retrieval, extraction medicine, also Shamanic Counselling and Divination. You are welcome to contact for further information or to arrange a time for us to meet. Please contact Brian on 01225 445971 or 0797 626 4432 or e-mail: shamanicshoestrings@live.co.uk www.shamanicshoestrings.co.uk

shiatsu

Shiatsu is a hands-on therapy that gently awakens your body’s natural healing ability by working on meridians and acupressure points. Your body, mind and spirit are intimately connected and can powerfully influence each other. As well as re-connecting us with our physical health, shiatsu can unlock deeply-rooted emotions held in the body, allowing us to become free of the constraints we experience, often through no fault of our own. We can then begin to step fully into our wholeness and our wonderful true selves! My clients often report feeling a new sense of aliveness, health, calm/relaxation, and acceptance. I am passionate about helping people to feel more alive and well! Carla-Jo Geraghty BA(Hons), Dip.Shiatsu www.shiatsu4balance.com 0781 756 8580 info@shiatsu4balance.com

Bath School of Shiatsu and Yoga

Shiatsu training and ongoing weekly yoga classes. Ffi: Frank Davis 01225 859209 frank@bssy.co.uk www.bssy.co.uk

Bath Shiatsu Practice

Bodywork for wellbeing We are experienced Shiatsu practitioners and members of The Shiatsu Society (UK). Our practice is in a beautiful setting in the heart of Bath with easy parking. To find out more or to make an appointment please call Heidi Armstrong MRSS 0774 637 4507 and Rebecca Davis MRSS 0782 508 2555

New to meditation? Experienced? All are welcome. Zen meditation at Fulcrum House, 3 Grove Road, Bristol, BS6 6UJ. Every Tuesday at 7pm. Evening practice includes chanting, silent sitting meditation and walking meditation. It’s fine to sit on a cushion, bench or ordinary chair. Contact: 0117 963 2505 or email: bristolzencentre@gmail.com www.bristolzen.org www.furnacemountain.org

It’s Buddhism Jim, but not as you know it. Have you had your 10 a day? Just 10 minutes of meditation a day can radically change your life, find out how at Aro Ling, 127 Gloucester Rd, Bristol BS7 8AX. Buy Christmas presents with a difference. We stock a range of Buddhist books, DVDs, yoga and meditation supplies, and children’s books. Ongoing evening classes in Meditation, Tantra, Dzogchen, and Buddhist practice for everyday life. Free lunchtime meditation sessions 12.30-1.30 Wednesday-Friday. Regular weekend events with visiting Lamas please check our website for details. Therapy room available to hire £5 p/h. Also art gallery space and group room for hire. www.aro-ling.org Contact enquiry@aro-ling.org or call 0117 239 8505

Dharma Foundation Course 2012 Understanding what the Buddha taught and why. This one-year, modular, practice-based course provides a clear, comprehensive and practical grounding in the real fundamentals of Buddhism. Join us for all or any of the first three modules. Module 1: Going for Refuge (10 weeks), Module 2: Ethics (6 weeks), Module 3: Meditation (6 weeks). The final two modules build on those preceding and are by invitation: Module 4: Wisdom (6 weeks) and Module 5: Triratna and the Buddhist Tradition, Ritual and Devotion (8 weeks). Running on Thursday evenings through 2012, this course will be led by members of the Triratna Buddhist Order, and includes comprehensive course materials. For further information see AC www.bristol-buddhist-centre.org

Learn meditation. Learn how to work with your mind and body. By simply being present we can bring mindfulness and awareness to our experience and allow more space and joy to develop in our lives. Our evening sessions offer meditation for all, with meditation instruction available. Tuesday evening meditation (Stroud) 7.45-9pm at Chalford Village Hall, near Stroud. Call John or Sophie on 01453 889609, or email johnseex@talktalk.net Wednesday evening meditation (Bristol) 7.45-9.45pm at Bristol City Yoga, Bristol, BS2 8QW. Call Christine on 07505 384628, or email bristol@shambhala.org.uk We also regularly hold weekend courses and programmes. Visit our website for more details www.bristol.shambhala.info

Chan means meditation in Chinese. It is the historical root of Japanese Zen Buddhism. We are a group of lay practitioners with properly authenticated teachers, who explore Chan Buddhism through meditation practice, talks, and everyday life and in following a programme of retreats. All are welcome, beginners and established practitioners alike. We meet at 7.30pm on Wednesdays at The Coach House, 40A, Eastfield, Westbury-on-Trym, BS9 4BE (please park in the road, not the drive.) For more information, please telephone 0117 924 8819 (evenings), e-mail: enquiries@bristolchan.co.uk or visit our website at http://bristolchan.co.uk for details of additional events

A spiritual practice which is ancient yet always new, reaching back within Christianity to the desert fathers and mothers of the fourth century. John Main a Benedictine monk rediscovered this practice and has made it available to all. Give your soul space to breathe. The World Community for Christian Meditation is contemporary, ecumenical, contemplative. Over 20 weekly groups in The Spark’s area. Newcomers always welcome. Saturday 10th December - Quiet Day at Elsie Briggs House, Westbury on Trym. For info and to book: call 01275 463727 or email bristol@christian-meditation.org.uk

Healing, therapy, meditation, courses. People from all walks of life are welcome. • Treatments: Hypnotherapy, EFT, Theta Healing, Reiki and Tuning Fork Healing • Meditation: weekly Sacred Sound Classes • Courses: Theta Healing (Basic and Advanced) Reiki up to Master/ Teacher Level, Magnified Healing • Spiritual Parenting: Meetings, coaching, blogs, meditation and Sacred Sound classes for parents and children. www.healinghousefrome.co.uk 0778 391 2900, ABT juliajeremiah@ymail.com

Do you long to deepen your experience of God, your relationship with others, and your appreciation of all the world’s major faith traditions - while remaining deeply rooted in your own? Do you yearn to be an activist in healing the divisions between peoples, nations and religions? One way to do so, with other committed men and women from diverse backgrounds, is on our two-year, part-time training. Students can go on to become interfaith ministers, offering spiritual counselling and sacred ceremonies tailored to the needs and longings of individuals from all faiths and none. To see if the One Spirit that calls us, calls you too, ring 08444 457 004, or visit: www.interfaithfoundation.org

Established in 1988, the Centre follows the Tibetan Gelug tradition under guidance from two fully-qualified Lharampa Geshes from Drepung Loseling Monastery in India. The Centre hosts visits from other lamas and was involved in organising visits by HH Dalai Lama to Glasgow in 2004 and Nottingham in 2008. It incorporates the Centre for Whole Health. The ongoing programme is: Mondays 7.30pm: basic guided meditation Tuesday 7.00pm: Tara Puja, teachings by Geshe Thinley Thursday 7.30pm: introductory talks, discussions and questions - joined by Geshe Thinley. Weekends: occasional retreats and courses. Lam Rim (Wilts. & Glos.) Buddhists meet in Corsham, Saturday 5.00pm: teachings by Geshe Thinley; Thursday 7.30pm: basic guided meditation. Tel: 01249 715152. Lam Rim Bristol Buddhist Centre. 12 Victoria Place, Bedminster, Bristol BS3 3BP. Tel: 0117 963 9089 info@lamrim.org.uk www.lamrim.org.uk

A non-profit organisation • School of Enlightenment offering a three stage course - all of the skills and knowledge you will need to create your own path of Ascension from basic to advanced, including psychic development, sustainable living, all the tools for Self-Awareness and understanding The Mind, freedom from fear-vibration conditioning, understanding the UFO phenomenon, ETs, otherworldly beings and alternative planes of existence • Healing of The Mind and mental conditions - alignment with the True-Self • Starbeing Activation and Guidance • Creativity Guidance • Understanding Death, the Universal Laws and God • One-on-one Enlightenment training • Understanding Twin Flames and Sexual Energy • Future knowledge of humanity and your potential as a species. www.spiritualandrogyny.org

Quakers share a way of life, based on our experience of the divine, rather than a set of beliefs. We are rooted in Christianity but we welcome everyone who is seeking truth and is attracted to worship based on shared silence. We do not have a written creed but try to bring the values of love, peace, truth, equality, simplicity, justice, and care for the environment into our lives and work. Newcomers are always welcome. Sunday Meetings in the Bristol area Bath, York Street, BA1 1NG, 11.00am Bedminster, Wedmore Vale, BS3 5HX, 10.45am Central Bristol, Champion Square, BS2 9DB, 11.00am Clevedon, 15 Albert Road, BS21 7RP, 10.30am Frenchay, Beckspool Road, BS16 1NT, 10.30am Horfield, 300 Gloucester Road, BS7 8PD, 10.30am Portishead, 11 St Mary’s Road, BS20 6QP, 10.30am Redland, 126 Hampton Road, BS6 6JE, 11.00am Thornbury, The Chantry, Castle St, BS35 1HB, 10.30am Weston-super-Mare, High Street, BS23 1JF, 10.30am We offer small discussion groups throughout the year led by experienced Quakers. For information ring 0117 942 9142 www.bristolquakers.org.uk

Since 1993 we've been busy helping the West Country to change (we’re 18 years old this year!) Thanks for your support along the way

or visit www.thespark.co.uk for more info or to book online

spirit - train

tai chi Natural Way T’ai Chi Sakya Buddhist Centre. 121 Sommerville Road, St Andrews, Bristol, BS6 5BX. 0117 924 4424 bristol@dechen.org www.dechen.org Regular Events Meditation Evenings - Tuesdays 8pm. Learn about tranquillity meditation and contemplate short talks on different Buddhist teachings each week. No experience necessary - £4. Tranquillity Meditation Mornings: Saturdays 10.30am. Suitable for all. Free. Classical Tibetan Language Classes: Mondays 8pm - £4. Beginners course starts January. Bath Sakya Group. Meditation Evenings Tuesdays 8pm. Tranquillity and reflective meditation (see above) - £4 Stillpoint, Broad Street Place, BA1 5LH (on steps between YMCA & Walcot St). Ffi: 07747 633577 / bath@dechen.org These regular events are open to all. Ffi contact Sakya Buddhist Centre www.dechen.org/bristol

A Free Church with an Open Mind. Are you looking for a welcoming community who gather to nurture one another’s lifelong spiritual growth? Although historically rooted in the liberal Christian tradition, Unitarians also value the insights of many world faiths and other sources of wisdom. For details of meetings, including meditation, intergenerational activities and personalised child dedications, marriages and funerals, please phone the contact numbers given below. Unitarian communities meet for worship at the following locations in this area: Bristol - Frenchay Chapel, Frenchay Common & at Unitarian Meeting, Brunswick Square, 0117 950 7906 Taunton - Mary Street Unitarian Chapel, 01823 282953 Trowbridge - Unitarian Meeting House, 45 Seymour Road, 01225 761866 Cirencester- Quaker Meeting House, Thomas Street, 01285 651507 Crewkerne - Unitarian Chapel, Hermitage Street, 01935 862602 National Unitarian website: www.unitarian.org. uk Charity no. 234482

Zazen is the posture of awakening. This practice has been transmitted from the time of Shakyamuni Buddha to now. Zazen is simply sitting with legs crossed, back straight, the attention focused on the posture and breathing. In zazen we do not seek to obtain anything. By turning the gaze inwards we can go naturally beyond the limits of the ego and directly experience awakening to our true nature. “In our disturbed world, practising zazen means coming back to the human being’s true dimension and rediscovering the fundamental balance of our existence” Taisen Deshimaru. Bristol Zen Dojo holds zazen practice five days a week with an introduction every Wednesday from 6-7.30pm. Bristol Zen Dojo, 91-93 Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8AT. E: info@zenbristol.co.uk W: www.zenbristol.co.uk T: 0117 942 4347

Bristol Insight Meditation Day Retreats Buddhist day retreats. Central Bristol. Visit www.bristolmeditation.org.uk

Music, Meditation and Poetry

Monthly Friday evenings of Musical Meditaton, Silence and Mystical Poetry. These evenings are led by Kunderke Kevlin and inspired by the Sufi tradition and the Open Path. Venue: Subud Hall, Clifton, Cost: £5, Time: 7.30-9.30pm For further details please phone us on 0772 764 4830 or 0117 974 1548

“for health and a peaceful heart” • Complete Yang Syllabus • Accredited senior instruction • Introductory, intermediate and advanced courses. www.naturalchi.co.uk taichicourses@gmail.com

training

Professional Training Courses in Holistic Massage with 2 intakes per year, February and October. Booking now. Diploma course giving a thorough grounding in Massage, Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology. Introductory Workshop weekends throughout the year. Advanced Workshops available for practitioners to extend their skills and experience. Massage Practice Days and Regular Supervision groups with BCMB tutors. BCMB is accredited by the Massage Training Institute (MTI) and works to the national training standards of the General Council for Massage Therapy. Workshops also available in Worcester. 30 Alma Vale Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 2HY. 0117 377 1201 enquiries@bristolmassage.co.uk www.bristolmassage.co.uk

Diploma courses are run in autumn and spring. Aromatherapy Diploma Includes two types of massage, aromatics, A&P, pathology and business skills. Professionally accredited by AAPA. Reflexology Diploma Includes reflexology theory and practice, A&P and business skills. Professionally accredited by IFR. Traditional Indian Head Massage Professionally accredited by IIHM. Runs autumn, spring and summer. Anatomy & Physiology Widely accepted by therapy training courses. One day courses • Introduction to Aromatherapy • Introduction to Massage • Aromatherapy: Blending Creams and Ointments • Crystals and Aromatherapy. For more information on our courses visit our web site: www.bristolschoolofholistictherapies.co.uk Contact us for a copy of our prospectus. Email: info@bristolschoolofholistictherapies.co.uk Phone: 0870 8890350

The Bristol School of Shiatsu is one of the longest established Shiatsu schools in Britain, offering courses at all levels from a three-year Practitioner Training to three weekend beginners Foundation Courses. Our non-residential, part-time courses are taught by UK Shiatsu Society registered teachers who share a common commitment to presenting Shiatsu tuition of the highest standards, in an atmosphere that is enlivening, supportive and fun, while offering diversity in their teaching styles and approach to Shiatsu. The School puts emphasis on an intuitive approach to Shiatsu within a framework of Traditional Oriental Medicine and, as well as the mastery of Shiatsu for the healing of others, we encourage the personal development and well-being of our students. For more information please contact: Bristol School of Shiatsu, PO Box 419, Bridgwater TA6 9ES. Tel: 0844 335 0573 e-mail: shiatsubss@blueyonder.co.uk www.shiatsubristol.co.uk S2

You can study for a diploma in Naturopathic Nutrition in Bristol, with CNM, The College of Naturopathic Medicine. It’s a part-time course with classes taking place in Bristol on a fixed number of weekends throughout the year. Diplomas in Nutrition, Naturopathy, Herbal Medicine, Acupuncture and Homeopathy can be studied at CNM in London on week day or weekend courses. Request a prospectus or attend a free Open Evening. Tel: 01342 410505 info@naturopathy-uk.com www.naturopathy-uk.com

We hold free open days with a free lunch and offer free treatment for patients at our teaching clinic. If you are looking for an inspiring vocation, a change of career, or are just interested in knowing more about homeopathic medicine then your future is a short bus ride away. Open days are held throughout the year for you to sit in on lectures, watch the clinic in action and chat to staff and students. Courses are part-time and designed for busy people who wish to study alongside their present occupation. For further information contact the college via the website: www.conhom.com or telephone Kate at the office 0845 603 2878

Craniosacral therapy is a powerful yet gentle way of addressing a wide range of symptoms & conditions. The fully accredited 2-year training is presented by experienced teachers who have provided Craniosacral Trainings since 1990 in the UK and worldwide. Our new curriculum now incorporates several areas of advanced study to provide a more comprehensive skill-base for the practitioner before they start up in practice. New areas of study include: working with the viscera; cranial nerves; the neuro-endocrine system; and working with the energetics of the chakra system. • Next training begins Spring in Stroud, Gloucestershire • Regular Introduction Weekends throughout the year. Contact: Sheila Kean 01503 250767 www.resonance.org.uk cst@maitri.co.uk

Rejuvanessence Practitioner Training. Facial energy release. Unique holistic rejuvenating facial massage also known as Angels’ Touch. New eight-day certificate course set over 4 modules or two-day foundation weekend. Affiliated to BCMA and Light Touch Therapists. Learn five different sessions on the face, skull, neck and shoulders. Frees the connective tissue and consequently releases the pent up tension in these areas, helping achieve a blooming healthy complexion naturally! Gentle on the therapist and heavenly for the client. “Like having your face softly ironed by the fingertips of your favourite seraph” The Times. www.carolinejosling.com rejuvan.essence@virgin.net 07973 732842

Thich Nhat Hanh Inspired Meditation Group

Our friendly group usually meets four times monthly, Redland, Bristol, to practice meditation and mindfulness following the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh. Ffi: Anna 0117 973 1425

77% of our readers say spirituality is important to them. 48% practice meditation, attend prayer groups or go on retreats. Enlightened lot, eh?

Become part of an exciting profession at the leading edge of healthcare for the 21st century. ION, the UK’s leading Nutritional Therapy training provider, is offering the opportunity to train as a Nutritional Therapist in Bristol. Our renowned three year, part-time Nutritional Therapy Diploma Course is fully accredited by the Nutritional Therapy Council. It will be running in Bristol from October 2012, with the preparatory Science Access Course (for those who need it) starting March 2012. Weekend attendance means you can study for this professional qualification while continuing to work in your day-job. Find out more at www.ion.ac.uk E: courses@ion.ac.uk T: 0208 614 7815

One of the fastest-growing complementary therapies, Kinesiology can increase energy levels, release stress, address digestive problems, overcome learning difficulties and raise self-esteem. You will learn how to test for food sensitivities, relieve many back and neck problems, access the body’s need for water and take the guesswork out of which supplements to use, plus many other exciting techniques. These simple yet powerful tools will give the lay person or the professional a very sound, practical approach to authentic Kinesiology. Start dates: 25th February and September 2012, taught over four weekends. See website for special offer! For further information or booking call Rosie Dowbekin 01373 836722 www.dawnbaileykinesiology.co.uk

Arrange a Free School Visit Now! If you want to: find new inspiration, be happier & help others, have a career in healthcare or work from home then give us a call. Established in 1981, we have courses from beginner to practitioner level. Flexible home study or attendance. Attendance is only 1 weekend a month. Private School set in beautiful grounds, a real Cotswold retreat! Go online to watch movies about the School or contact us for a prospectus. School of Homeopathy. Stroud, Gloucestershire. Free phone: 0800 0439 349, e-mail: info@homeopathyschool.com www.homeopathyschool.com

11 module Hypnotherapy and NLP Certificate Training. Taught by a qualified, accredited teacher and hypnotherapy and Master Practitioner of NLP with over 15 years of experience. Course accredited by NCH(UK) and NGH(USA). Course includes NLP Practitioner and specialist certification in Anxiety, Ericksonian and Stop Smoking. Evening, weekday or weekend training in small classes. Also, training courses and supervision for practising hypnotherapists and therapists, members of the public, corporations and organisations in NLP. For details of the course / to arrange an interview contact Hilary Norris-Evans on 0788 771 4892 info@getmindfit.co.uk or getmindfit@hotmail.com To download a prospectus go to www.hypno-nlp.org - site of the UK Academy more training ads over the page

48 train - yoga Embodied-Relational Therapy Workshops and Training Courses

Allison Priestman Wanting support to work with your client’s Body Process? Body Psychotherapy workshops and training from one day to two years. • Working with Body Process, 28/29 Jan • Working with Character Styles, Fulcrum House Bristol • Modular two year training, starts April 2013 Derbyshire. 01453 731226, www.allisonpriestman.co.uk BS(1),T

Gaia’s Healing Earth Medicine

Year-long healing course round the Wheel. www.temple-of-eartha.com/earthmedicine.html

Susan Lawrence Training

www.susanlawrencetrainng.co.uk Tailor-made training courses, workshops and team development • confidence building • improving communication • change process facilitation • and much more - please visit my website for details. susan_lawrence_evaluation@yahoo.co.uk 0117 933 2607 (I also offer Dramatherapy - see my ad in Arts Therapies section for info)

yoga

Pregnancy, birth, mums & babies. Bristol/Stroud. Frankie: 0789 099 6782 www.yogafrankie.co.uk Specialist yoga studios in Stokes Croft and Bishopston, Bristol. Open every day with over 40 classes a week. Come and enjoy our beautiful, spacious studios. Beginners welcome! Classes include: Ashtanga, Hatha, Iyengar, Restorative, Anusara, Kundalini, Belly Dance and Pilates. We welcome families with our classes for pregnancy, the postnatal period and babies, and offer children’s and family yoga. We regularly host visiting teachers and offer weekend workshops and retreats. We also offer Yoga Teacher training courses, accredited by Yoga Alliance. A warm welcome awaits you. £10 off yoga classes when you log onto www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk/offers www.bristolcityyoga.co.uk info@bristolcityyoga.co.uk 0117 924 4414

Are you ordinary enough to be a Samaritan Volunteer? Unlike most other helplines, Samaritans are available to offer emotional support 24 hours a day to those people in distress or despair as well as those who may be feeling suicidal. Join our volunteer team supporting others and receive free training, ongoing support and reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. Volunteers for night duties are particularly needed. To find out more phone 0117 927 9387 or visit our website at www.samaritans.org/bristol

women Wild Women Wise Women - Spirals of Being

Women’s retreats through the turning year Inner journeys, voice, movement, meditation and creative enquiry, woven with ceremony to celebrate our sacred feminine • The Still Point 26th-29th January • The Outward Spiral 29th March-1st April • The Inward Spiral 4th-7th October. Wales. Jules Heavens 01639 830052 jules@soundweaver.demon.co.uk www.julesheavens.com

“we thought it was an extremely straightforward and streamlined process” You can now book and pay for your listings ads online: www.thespark.co.uk

First Aid Training Courses

Training for Yoga Teachers and Therapists. On-site or Open Courses. HSE reg. For more information and course dates see www.firstaidglos.co uk

Gentle, Friendly Yoga. Bishopston

Postures, breathing, deep relaxation. Mondays. justgentleyoga.wordpress.com 0776 301 0591 0117 924 0221

Holistic Yoga Sessions - One-To-One

Are you suffering from stress, depression or needing to make difficult decisions? If so, Holistic Yoga could be of great help. Deborah Clarke of LifeChanges, is offering one-to-one, holistic yoga sessions to provide therapeutic support for managing change. Sessions available in Clifton and Portishead. Cost £30.00. 0117 9466 988 www.lifechanges.edrivehosting.com

Kundalini Yoga

Bristol Feral Choir

volunteering

Weekly classes and private tuition with Yoga Alliance UK registered yoga teacher. Gently flow and unfold. New courses starting in January! www.yogawithkaire.com

Birthlight Yoga

voice Improvising choir; classes and performances Grow your own creative confidence and vocal technique learning to improvise within a group. Fun, feral and friendly. • Guided drop-in classes, monthly Wednesdays in term time. Cost £5. Fab location at Bristol Greenhouse Studio, 292 Ashley Down Rd. • Dayskools and events - Going Feral; monthly Saturdays: A series of creative vocal playdays in the woods near Bristol, with fire and hot snacks. £25/£20 concs. Booking essential. See website for dates. www.bristolferalchoir.org.uk email bristolferalchoir@gmail.com text 07837 599239 or find us on Facebook

Beginners Hatha Yoga in Bristol

The Devon School of Yoga brings together classes, workshops, retreats and training courses under one umbrella, covering all aspects of the subject. Set in locations across Devon, ideal surroundings are provided for yoga practice, study and contemplation. The school teaches a holistic approach. The next two-year teacher training course and one-year post graduate yoga therapy course starts September 2012. The next five-w/ends foundation course starts January 2012. Plus weekly classes, year-round day workshop programme, seasonal residential weekends and North India retreat. For information or a copy of the programme, please contact us: The Devon School of Yoga, 4 Barnfield Hill, St Leonards, Exeter EX1 1SR. 01392 420573 info@devonyoga.com www.devonyoga.com

The Yoga of Awareness Kundalini yoga is a powerful & transformative Yoga, restoring peace & harmony to the body, mind & soul • Tuesdays 10am-11.30am Yogasara: Anjali 0796 110 5780 satnam.anjali@hotmail.com • Wednesdays 10am-11.30am Bristol City Yoga: Preet Kaur 07704 636647 www.kundaliniyogasoundhealing.com • Wednesdays 1.30pm-3pm Yogasara: Satya 0795 836 3056 satnam.satya@hotmail.co.uk All welcome. No previous experience needed.

Satyananda Yoga

Movement to stillness: body, breath, mind. Bristol/Stroud 0789 099 6782 www.yogafrankie.co.uk

Sivananda Yoga Bristol

Asana, Pranayama, Relaxation. Classes, Workshops & Retreats. www.yogaprema.org 07789 263366

Yoga: Bath, Bradford-on-Avon Beginners. Intermediate. Relaxation. Mindfulness. Enjoyable. 01225 743686 www.jacquijarosy.co.uk

Yoga Holidays at Huzur Vadisi, Turkey

Yoga can improve strength, flexibility and co-ordination. The various postures also promote relaxation and the release of tension. We offer weekly drop-in classes and courses that take place in our fully equipped and beautiful shrine room. Maximum class size is 16. The Centre shop (open Monday to Saturday 1-4pm) sells yoga mats, blocks, belts etc. Drop-in Classes (suitable for beginners and more experienced practitioners): Tuesday & Thursday 10.30am-noon, and Wednesdays & Thursdays 5.45-7.15pm. Improvers Class. Mondays 5.45-7.15pm. All classes cost £8/£5 or £75 for 10 classes with yoga card. Contact us for more details. Bristol Buddhist Centre, 162 Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8NT. t: 0117 924 9991 e: info@bristol-buddhist-centre.org w: www.bristol-buddhist-centre.org Reg Charity No. 900165

Yogasara is the Art of Wellbeing. Teaching quality yoga, chi-kung, pilates, movement, meditation and more. Committed to excellence, our teachers give you the best. A Community Interest Company, Yogasara puts people and yoga before profit. Committed to sustainability, community and making this planet a better place. Be the Change, join us at Yogasara. Sarah/Christopher 0778 950 1884 www.yogasara.co.uk Picton St, Montpelier, Bristol

‘My favourite yoga holiday destination’ Simon Low, The Yoga Academy Huzur Vadisi, established 1993, is renowned for its stunning location, food and hospitality. Courses and retreats with top yoga teachers Easter-October. Swimming pool. ’Idyllic’ Michele Pernetta, Bikram Yoga College, London. www.huzurvadisi.com

Yoga in BS3, BS6 and BS8

Offering: Classes, Personal Tuition, Sunday Workshops, Holidays Classes: • Monday 7.30pm, 126 Hampton Rd • Tuesday 7pm, BS6 6JE • Tuesday 7pm, BS8 2YD • Wednesday 7.45pm, Tobacco Factory, BS3 • Thursday 7.30pm, BS8 1SR • Saturday 10.45am, Faith Space, BS3. Classes start from £5!! “After attending Charlotte’s class I was immediately convinced that she has the expertise to empower her students to push themselves without leading to injury, focusing on good technique, using effecting words and gentle hands.” Claire - physiotherapist. Call Charlotte: 07533 732 035 HT www.yogabristol.com

Book your ad by 15 december to get the early bird discount. • book online at www.thespark.co.uk • email sales@thespark.co.uk • post to The Spark, 86 Colston Street, Bristol BS1 5BB • or ring 0117 914 34 34

have you seen us online? visit www.thespark.co.uk to read exclusive articles, news, reviews & blogs & our Daily Spark twitter feed make comments, browse listings & event ads, enter competitions, buy an advert or even read this very magazine on your computer. 1,000,000+ visits last year! we’re also on twitter @spark_magazine and facebook.

Modern, huh?

Letters

Competitions

Write to: The Spark, 86 Colston St, Bristol BS1 5BB editor@thespark.co.uk

Answers to: The Spark, 86 Colston St, Bristol BS1 5BB

WIN! EcoForce cleaning kit Our star letter will receive a Kitchen Pack, Deep Clean Mop and Water Spray (worth £33!) from e-cloth, a range of environmentally friendly cleaning products which enable you to clean your home using nothing else but water. Recommended by Allergy UK. e-cloth is exclusively offering all The Spark readers a 10% discount off purchases from www.e-cloth.com. To get your 10% discount simply enter code SPARK10 at the checkout.

Dear Spark, I usually enjoy The Spark but was horrified by your inclusion of an elderflower cordial recipe on p22 of the summer issue. Lovely I’m sure, but local or healthy? Surely neither. 4lb of sugar!! 4lb!! More than mine (and my husband’s) annual purchase of sugar! I enjoy a slice of cake, and ice cream as a treat, but 4lbs of sugar? I was staggered. Conscientious parents are fighting a battle to keep their kids off sugary canned drinks and sweetened fruit juice. Can I suggest, as a healthier alternative, infusing fresh or dried elderflowers in boiled water, then cooling it, straining it, and adding it to apple juice (half and half). Fizzy water adds a nice zing. Use English apple juice and it’s local too, which brings me to my second point. You support and promote local food, then you recommend using 4lb of sugar from the other side of the world. The two bags of sugar in my larder (caster and demarara), are from Mauritious and Malawi. This will have come by diesel steam ship to London, then by lorry to distribution centres, then on more lorries to the shops... local? Honey, on the other hand, I can buy within a mile of home. To rant a bit more on this subject – bear with me – our regular farm shop makes a mockery of “buy local” by listing food miles on their products. Now, a few of their products (fruit and veg) will have

gone directly from supplier to shop, but lots of stuff is sourced with ingredients from around the world, and made up locally. For example, the farm shop’s ‘locally produced’ marmalade comes in at 50 miles on the label. Oranges from Seville (by road across Spain and France, across the channel on a diesel ferry) sugar as before. Jam jars from Leeds (I know, I delivered them), oranges chopped up in the Mendips. Who are they kidding? Sadly, most of us! I was in a National Trust shop recently where they were offering ‘local’ lemonade and so I asked them how they managed to grow lemons in Sussex. I wasn’t nasty; we had a good chat. Now, I wholeheartedly agree that it is daft to import apples, potatoes and grains that we can grow here in the UK, but how would you like to manage without olives, olive oil, sunflower oil, bananas, pineapples, oranges, grapefruits, figs, dates, raisins, nuts, coconut, cocoa, tea, chocolate, coffee, ginger, most spices, rice etc...? Staple foods for most of us. Let’s at least be honest about our food miles. I use Bath farmer’s market regularly (expensive but good); I use independent shops rather than supermarkets (harder work but it’s a principle); and I ‘buy local’ when I can (eggs from the neighbour) and get milk delivered from my local dairy, but I’m not fooling myself. After all, what would Christmas be without the pudding?! Kind regards to you all, (Mrs) Liz Owen

competition winners 66 Lily’s kitchen: Cerian Pearson, Avonmouth Pam Beamish, Bristol Robert Milligan, Bristol J Greenway, Winscombe Westley Farm: Dawn Berry, Cheltenham

Nomad’s Clothing Anita Hayne, Bridgwater Beryl Maddison, Bath Nicole Paterson, Bristol

Obituary: Dr Shen Hongxun Obituary by Eve Jackson

r Shen, creator of taijiwuxigong, was a major teacher of taiji quan (t’ai chi ch’uan), qigong (ch’i kung), meditation and healing in China, Europe and the USA. Born into a Catholic family in Shanghai he began to study taiji at 11 when advised to take up sport after an illness. He was soon taken as a student by a great master, Professor Yao Huanzi, and later studied a variety of systems under different masters. He also practised both Chinese and Tibetan forms of Buddhist meditation, his main teacher being Lama Fahai, a half-Tibetan monastic teacher in the Kagyu tradition, who recognised his level of development by naming him a lama in his turn, with the name Fu Re. He chose to teach as a layman, without a religious framework. A doctor of Western and Chinese medicine, he was director of a hospital, technical director of a pharmaceutical company and director-withhonour of the Qigong Science Society in China. He brought together his medical experience and his mastery of psycho-physical arts to develop his own therapeutic system, called Buqi. After the Cultural Revolution in China there was a great flourishing of new versions of traditional self-cultivation systems under the name of qigong, a government-approved term for such practices, supposedly shorn of their spiritual dimension. There followed a proliferation of schools and masters, among

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whom were charlatans and inadequately trained teachers, and the scandals combined with the popularity of the movement eventually brought a government clamp-down. Dr Shen was called upon to help people who had suffered mental and physical problems as a result of practising ill-conceived systems. In 1987 he was invited to supervise PhD students from universities in Belgium and Italy, and decided to stay in the West, along with his daughter Shen Jin and his son Shen Zhengyu, who survive him, are themselves masters and are carrying on his teachings in the UK. He founded the Buqi Institute in Belgium and Shen Hongxun College in the UK. Dr Shen was a master of “empty force”; being able to move people from a distance through the creation of strong vibration, and taught his followers the skills of using such force for healing. He will be remembered by his many students for his power, generosity and humour. He related to every student individually, and maintained an astonishingly intense teaching programme, travelling from one course and country to another. Dr Shen Hongxun b. 8 August 1939, Shanghai d. 26 October 2011, Munkzwalm, near Ghent. For more details of Dr Shen’s life see www.shenhongxun.com

coForce make practical and effective household products from recycled materials: a truly green alternative to products manufactured with virgin raw materials. Made in the UK, EcoForce sell sponges, scourers, cloths and dusters for cleaning; clothes pegs, peg baskets and clothes lines for laundry, plus food bag grips for storing leftovers. These award-winning products offer a real ethical choice: all products are made from at least 90 per cent recycled waste. The Spark has teamed up with EcoForce to offer five lucky readers the chance to win a year’s supply of green cleaning goodies, worth £50. Included in your prize is Dishmatic, the natural answer to washing up: a quality sponge scourer and fillable handle in one. Simply fill the hollow handle with washing up liquid and it dispenses it as you clean. EcoForce and Dishmatic are widely available in supermarkets, Oxfam, Homebase, B&Q or online, helping you run a greener home without it costing the earth. For a chance to win simply answer this

question: What percentage of our waste are we currently recycling or composting? (hint: you’ll find the answer on www.ecoforce.co.uk) Answers (postcards only please) with your address AND phone number to EcoForce Comp at the address above. All entries must be received by January 19. You can also enter online at www.thespark.co.uk

WIN! 20 metres of hedgerow

ecades of intensive farming have devastated many of our indigenous hedgerows, causing a shortage of food and shelter for small animals, birds, butterflies and bees, and precious habitat for smaller plants. It is important that we try and restore our hedgerows, and each and every metre helps. The Spark has teamed up with Trees Direct, the original ‘trees as gifts’ mail order company, to offer one reader the chance to win a unique prize: up to 20 metres of traditional hedgerow. Perfect for planting in the early months of the year, this hedgerow (typically Hawthorn, Hazel, Beech, Hornbeam, Blackthorn, Viburnum and Dog Rose) would be a great, natural addition to your garden, allotment, school garden, community garden or your favourite community project. All Trees Direct’s trees and shrubs have been chosen to give pleasure and help the environment throughout the year: naturally grown outdoors in the UK, your hedging plants will be sent out using recycled materials, bare rooted (ready to plant) with full planting instructions. For a chance to win this incredible prize, tell us – in no more than 30 words – how

having a hedgerow would benefit you/your group. Entries (postcards only please) with your address AND phone number to Trees Direct Comp, at the above address. All entries must be received by January 19. You can also enter online at www.thespark.co.uk A family-run business, Trees Direct provide all that a garden enthusiast, novice gardener or garden designer needs including native, ornamental and fruit & nut trees, hedging and more. www.treesdirect.co.uk

WIN! Bluebeard’s shaving kit!

en the world over share a common problem: tough stubble that blunts the edge of even the keenest razor. Now these men, known as “Bluebeards”, can breathe a sigh of relief, as there is finally a shaving solution that works! The eco-friendly Bluebeards Revenge range contains a unique formula to combat thick stubble, razor rash, bumps and burn, but it’s also the only shaving cream on the market to contain Decelerine, scientifically proven to reduce beard growth by around 40 per cent in 60 days. The range is completely paraben-free, suitable for vegetarians and the packaging is recyclable. So if you’re fed up with cheap supermarket shaving foam or a super-expensive, designer label concoctions more akin to face cream

than tough shaving creams, try this solution designed for ‘Bluebeards’ by fellow sufferers. The Spark has five Ultimate Bluebeards Revenge Shaving Kits to give away, each consisting of a tub of luxury shaving cream, pre-shave oil, post shave balm, shaving brush and silver technology anti-perspirant deodorant. To enter our competition, simply tell us: which rugby club Bluebeards Revenge signed a sponsorship deal with? (hint: you’ll find the answer at www.bluebeards-revenge.co.uk). Entries (postcards only please) with your address AND phone number to Bluebeards Revenge Comp, at the address above. All entries must be received by January 19. You can also enter online at www.thespark.co.uk

18/11/11 15:17:15

50 changemaker

Claude Anshin Thomas Buddhist mendicant Interview by Fiona McClymont • photo by Jo Halladey Claude Anshin Thomas was born in 1947 in Pennsylvania, USA. He served in Vietnam and was honorably discharged in 1968, aged 20. After experiencing drug addiction, homelessness, post-traumatic stress and jail he found himself on a Buddhist retreat in 1991. Four years later he was ordained a Zen Buddhist monk and took vows of mendicancy: the ancient Buddhist tradition of journeying with no money or supplies, relying only on the generosity of strangers, and began organising peace pilgrimages around the world. He founded the Zaltho Foundation, to promote peace and nonviolence and leads retreats on mindfulness and meditation practice, transformation, and reconciliation.

focusing on where we’re different, let’s really work to focus on where we’re connected and the same. My commitment is to bring an end to all wars and all suffering in my lifetime, with the understanding that the roots of war, the roots of violence and suffering, are in me. It’s about waking up to all of the conditioning which has been passed on and exists in me. I want to let people know that we can bring an end to war, and that war is not just what’s happening in Afghanistan and wherever else, it’s happening all around us – in our families, in our social structures, in our institutions, everywhere. I am a proponent of active non-violence. We need to be willing to recognize that at any given moment I have the capacity to act in violence, but I also have the possibility to make other choices today and I choose not to walk down that path. It took me over 40 years to be willing to consider that there was anything positive that came out of my war experience. I can go into war zones, I know how to function there. I can go into locked psychiatric facilities, into prisons, I actually have the privilege of going onto death row. My service and my willingness to deal with that in a very open and direct way gives me credibility that other people don’t have. Looking back I see that everything I went through was all zen training. I have the possibility to do the things that I do today because of all my extreme experiences: they gave me the opportunity to understand that there isn’t one view that is correct. If you have a particular idea of how you’re supposed to be, then you’ll view life in a narrow perspective you’ll miss the whole body of what is available to you. My life didn’t unfold in the ‘usual’ way, but I don’t make an effort to make sense of it in any particular way. It just is its own self.

A lot of the transformations in my life happened because I just didn’t know what else to do. I joined the military at my father’s encouragement: he had to sign the papers because I was too young. He’d been a soldier and I’d listened to him and other veterans talking about war. I didn’t realise at the time, but they weren’t telling the truth. Going to Vietnam seemed like a solution to my problems. My drinking was out of control and I was in a lot of trouble with money and loan sharks. I was just helpless, caught in this cycle and I thought, “I can get out of this by going to Vietnam and being a hero. I’ll come home with medals and everything will be provided for me, just like in the movies”. Reality differed significantly. I remember when the plane landed in Vietnam – the door opening, that first blast of hot humid air, the smell, the glowing lights from generators and the artillery fire – right then I thought “What have I done?” I suddenly realised that this wasn’t a comic book, or a WW2 movie: this was the real deal. I could die. There wasn’t anything to do, except keep going. I had to suppress all my feelings because it was so emotionally big I couldn’t process it. I became entirely dependent on huge dumps of adrenaline, hooked on the narcotic of combat. Without that I didn’t feel anything. I got out of the military and my intoxicants changed. I discovered I could anaesthetize myself with heroin. I was doing drugs from ages 20 to 35, using every day. I had to stay high. It was years of suffering. I lived two years on the street. I was an unstable and intimidating character. On April 13, 1983, I took an overdose of barbiturates. I just didn’t see the point of living. I was visited in intensive care by some men who were part of a group committed to abstinence and they took me into treatment.

Spark67.ab27.indd 50

Once I stopped using alcohol and drugs, I experienced the spiritual reality of life. Not the spiritual aspect of life, but the reality that life itself was a spiritual process. I saw that I had the opportunity to live differently. A process of healing and transformation started to take place. I went into therapy, although I was terrified. I thought that I would discover that I was as crazy as I felt. My entire life, I’ve always felt different, outside from how everyone else seemed to be: I just could not make sense of anything. As a child I used to imagine that I was an alien that had just been dropped here. I was always thinking I had to be something other than what I was and I just couldn’t achieve it. It never worked for me, especially post-war. I absolutely could not live in a regular kind of way, despite making all sorts of efforts. It wasn’t until my introduction to Buddhist teachings, that suddenly I had a context through which I could make sense out of my life. Things began to fit for me and gave me a way to view all my experiences.

My therapist recommended me to go to a Buddhist meditation retreat. I thought she was out of her mind! I thought it was stupid, religious crap. I was afraid to go. I really didn’t want it – no, that’s not true: that which was still holding me hostage, trapped in a certain identity of myself, didn’t want me to go there. But when I listened to the monk at the meditation retreat, it was a sigh-of-relief moment, that I wasn’t alone. He said things that I had always known to be true. The focus of Buddhist meditation is to open myself up to this whole reality of life and in the midst of that, be steady. It’s about realising the suchness and truth of all experiences. Not a relative understanding of truth – right/wrong, bad/good, yes/no etc. – but a place beyond that. And there is this place! I remember talking about it in therapy, and they would always say “No, no, there is no absolute truth”. But there is. There is a place of suchness where we are all connected. We may look and speak differently but in each of us there is something beyond that. So instead of

I’m doing what’s placed in front of me to do. Mendicancy means I’m not permitted to work in a gainful way; it means no insurance, no retirement, no home. I’m only permitted to be stationary for three months a year and only allowed to go where I’m invited. This is not about fame or gain for me. I’ve been presented with an opportunity and my responsibility is to be as authentic and as clear as I can be: I don’t resort to didactic lectures, I talk about things in ways that the non-initiated can understand. I am simply a vehicle. I organise and participate in peace pilgrimages. I’ve walked around 19,000 miles round the world on these pilgrimages. One of them was an eight-month peace march from Auschwitz to Hiroshima, through 27 countries, which involved bearing witness to major sites of war and violence. Why do I do it? I do it to practise peace, to be peace, but I don’t walk expressly for peace. If I have some preconceived notion of what peace is, I might never be able to participate in it. Peace is not an idea, a political movement, or a dogma. Peace is a way of life: living mindfully in the present moment, breathing, enjoying each breath. Peace becomes. It is fresh and new with every moment. To find out more about Zaltho Foundation, or make a donation, visit www.zaltho.org

18/11/11 15:17:15

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Pay monthly by standing order: Standing orders (4 issue minimum) help spread your costs, you get Early Bird prices; you don’t miss an issue, and you CAN change your words each issue. Contact beccy@thespark.co.uk for more info. Images TIFF, JPEG or PDF format only please, 300 dpi. Headers are 63mm wide & 25mm high. Artwork should be CMYK not RGB.

Design Fees • We are happy to design your ad for you if you provide text/photos/graphics for a £35 charge. • A design fee of at least £35 (inc vat) will be charged for preparing ads if they are not ready to drop in. This includes translating Word files into display ads. Please send your files as high res pdfs or jpegs at 300 dpi.

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18/11/11 15:17:17

eyewitness

rear view… with Kate Evans photo Alex Cater

Kesty Morrison reports from her tent at Occupy Bristol as the camp outside Bristol Cathedral wins growing support from the public and the Bishop of Bristol…

placard on College Green reads photo Alex Cater ‘As one people, united, we acknowledge the reality that our system must protect our rights and upon corruption of that system it is up to the individuals to protect their own rights and those of their neighbours… that no true democracy is attainable when the process is determined by economic power. We come to you at a time when corporations, which place profit over people, self interest over justice, and oppression over equality, run our governments. We have peaceably assembled here, as is our right, to let those facts be known.’ up the mess when things get rough, and that Behind the sign is a growing collection that is basically all he is worth anyway. Rich of tents, a caravan, several placards, an art is homeless normally but he has certainly section, two small fires, an information brought the effects of war home to me. tent, healing tent (with a library and Every evening at 7pm there is the general two – not one – two books about Rolf assembly for discussing politics and strategy Harris!) and a sign explaining that the and every morning at 10am there is a meeting fire service has seen the site’s fire and is concerning day-to-day issues. There is a satisfied that it is contained and safe, and stewarding system, no sound system after asking politely that passers-by refrain from 11pm and the camp is now dry, ie alcohol and calling them. drug-free and I thank God, Marx and Robin A sign by the porta-loos reads ‘Dear Hood with all my heart for that. Bristol Cathedral, forgive us our trespasses The military ‘okayed’ as we forgive our presence at the those who site on Remembrance trespass against “Dear Bristol Cathedral: please forgive Sunday, and we all us.’ Someone honoured the minute was listening, us our trespasses as we forgive those who of silence. In The the Right trespass against us” Evening Post there are Reverend Mark lots of comments from Hill (Bishop the public about how of Bristol) said polite and tidy we are. recently that It is this, the passers-by, the daytime visitors if Jesus were around today he would be that come by and give donations of food or protesting alongside. moral support that are the real reason I have The first person I speak to when I stayed. To have so many people from different arrive is Robin. He had no intention of walks of life come up and say “I am totally camping, just came along to see what was behind you” is such a welcome reminder of going on. He has been camped for two the generosity of human beings and the power weeks. The man who helps me put my of the collective. tent up tells me that he has to roll around in his tent every morning to get his suit on to go to work at an insurance firm. Late at night a drunken passer-by shouts “Get a job” and quick as a snip, a tent dweller shouts back “get a soul!”. Rich (not his real name) is a Gulf war veteran. He suffers from CSR (Combat If you’ve got any time to nip down to College Stress Reaction). Some of his behavior is Green in the next few weeks, the folk down socially difficult. During cinema night he at Occupy Bristol need the following things goose walked around like a Nazi in front (and we’re sure a batch of flapjacks wouldn’t of the screen shouting “Obey obey!”. go amiss). The next night he kept us up with endless • firewood Johnny Cash replays (“I shot a man in • building materials Reno, just to watch him die”). They say • carpet comedy is tragedy plus time. As I get to • fresh coppiced hazel or willow for benders know Rich, this process goes in reverse. • blankets He starts off as a comedy character but • polythene then I get to know the real person. He is lovely: warm, caring and interested in Check the website for up-to-date info other people. I overhear him telling his www.occupybristoluk.org friend that his role in the camp is to clear

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18/11/11 15:17:19